Systems, methods and devices for providing an exertion recommendation based on performance capacity

ABSTRACT

Systems, methods, and devices are provided for determining an exertion recommendation for an anticipated exercise session. One such system includes a wearable device comprising a biosensor that monitors biometrics (e.g. heart rate); a motion sensor that monitors activity; a processor operatively coupled to the biosensor, the processor configured to process electronic signals periodically generated by the biosensor and the motion sensor; and a non-transitory computer-readable medium operatively coupled to the processor and storing instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to execute specific functions. In particular, the instructions are executed to cause the processor to generate biometric data from the biometrics (e.g. heart rate information in particular). Further, the instructions are executed to generate an exertion recommendation based on an exertion model created from and representing a relationship between prior exertion measures and prior response profile measures.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to fitness and activitymonitoring devices, and more particularly to systems and methods forproviding an exertion recommendation based on performance capacity usingsuch devices.

BACKGROUND

Previous generation fitness tracking devices generally only enabled auser to identify their heart rate during an exercise session or otheractivity. More modern fitness tracking devices now add functionalitythat monitor and track a user's fitness level, for example, by countingthe user's steps, estimating the total calories burned, miles run, etc.,and/or by estimating the user's heart rate variability and otherbiometric data. Nevertheless, currently available fitness monitoringdevices do not provide a user with a precise measure of exertion duringand throughout a given exercise session, and further do not provide aprecise exertion recommendation for a future exercise session based onprior measures. In particular, currently available devices do notprovide a personalized and precise exertion recommendation for anupcoming exercise session, as a measure of the user's prior exertionmeasures, response profile (i.e. performance capacity) measures, and thelike.

Because each person has unique physical characteristics andcapabilities, the effort required to perform a given activity ortask—and the intensity with which the task may be performed—may differbetween individuals. For example, a person with short legs may need toexert more effort to run a mile in six minutes than a person with muchlonger legs, all else being equal. Moreover, each person has uniquerecovery characteristics that may also change with time—whether in theshort term or long term. For example (demonstrating long term changes),in running a marathon a middle-aged person may find that with each milethey experience more fatigue (i.e. slower recovery) than they did whenthey ran the same marathon as a teenager. In another example(demonstrating short term changes), a weight-lifter wishing to perform20 reps on a bench press will need to exert more effort to lift thebarbell the twentieth time than she did for the nineteenth time; or inother words recovery will gradually slow throughout the set of 20 reps(and therefore greater effort will be required with each consecutiverep) because of the effort already exerted in each previous rep. Inother words, the effort required to perform a given activity will differfrom one moment to the next for particular individuals—even within thesame exercise session—depending on what they have been doing up to thatpoint. Finally, the effort required to perform a given activity maydiffer depending on how quickly the activity must be performed. Forexample, a person must exert more energy (i.e. greater intensity) to runa mile in six minutes than to run a mile in ten minutes, and the impactof each scenario will differ accordingly.

In view of the foregoing incongruities, quantifying and providing aprecise and personalized measure of exertion, as well as a precise andpersonalized measure of the user's response profile, can be of greatvalue to athletes seeking to modify, track, or gauge the effectivenessof their training regimen, project the impact of a particular activityon their physical condition at a given moment after a previouslyperformed activity, or to make any other such exertion based assessment.Furthermore, conventional devices do not provide a precise andpersonalized exertion recommendation to user's for a future exercisesession (or other activity or time interval) based on the user's priorexertion measures and/or prior response profile measures. Becausecurrently available devices do not provide such a precise such measures,it can be difficult for a user to meaningfully assess the impact that aparticular activity has had, is currently having, or will have on theirbody (e.g. energy level, capacity, stamina, etc.); and be even moredifficult to intelligently evaluate how to approach an anticipatedexercise session to achieve their desired goals.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In view of the above drawbacks, there exists a long-felt need forsystems, methods, and devices for detecting, computing and providinguser's with a precise and personalized measure of exertion based on anaccumulated measure of their exercise intensity over the course of aparticular exercise session, a given activity, or a predeterminedtimeframe. Further, there exists a long felt need for systems, methods,and devices for intelligently assessing a user's response profile (i.e.performance capacity) based on biometric and activity data as describedherein. Finally, there exists a ling-felt need for systems, methods, anddevices for determining and providing an exertion recommendation foranticipated/imminent/future exercise sessions using prior measures ofexertion and/or prior response profile measures as described above.

Such systems, methods and devices are the subject of this disclosure,and as one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, will inoperation enable a user to meaningfully and intelligently assess theirexertion levels during and after an exercise session; assess theirresponse profile before, during, and after an exercise session; andreceive/evaluate a recommended exertion for a future exercise sessionbased on one or more prior exertion measures and/or response profilemeasures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure, in accordance with one or more variousembodiments, is described in further detail with reference to thefollowing Figures. The Figures are provided for purposes of illustrationonly and merely depict typical or example embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example communications environment in whichembodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an examplewristband—depicted with the exemplary electronic capsule decoupled fromthe exemplary band—in accordance with various embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of the example wristband depictedin FIG. 2—including the electronic capsule and band—in accordance withvarious embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates a cross-sectional view of another example wristbandin accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure—heredepicted with the exemplary electronic capsule in a coupled orientationwith the exemplary band.

FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of an example electronic capsule that maybe used in accordance with various embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an exemplary electroniccapsule that may be used in accordance with various embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of example bands according toembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8A illustrates a perspective view of example earphones that may beused in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8B illustrates an example architecture for circuitry of earphonesin accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9A illustrates a perspective view of embodiments of an exampleearphone in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 9B illustrates a side view of embodiments of an example earphoneplaced in a user's ear in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 9C illustrates a frontal perspective view of embodiments of anexample earphone placed in a user's ear in accordance with the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 9D illustrates a cross-sectional view of an example earphone inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9E illustrates a cross-sectional view of an example earphone inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9F illustrates a cross-sectional view of an example earphone inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10A is a block diagram of an example computing device that may beused in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10B illustrates an example fitness tracking application and modulesin accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to prompt a user to adjust theplacement of earphones in the user's ear in accordance with variousembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12A is an example system in which various embodiments of thedisclosure may be implemented.

FIG. 12B is an example system in which various embodiments of thedisclosure may be implemented.

FIG. 13A is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine exertion in accordancewith various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13B is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine exertion in accordancewith various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13C is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine exertion in accordancewith various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13D is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine exertion in accordancewith various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13E is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine exertion in accordancewith various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13F is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine exertion in accordancewith various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14A is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine performance capacity inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14B is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine performance capacity inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14C is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine performance capacity inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 15A is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine an exertion recommendationin accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 15B is an example operational flow diagram illustrating variousoperations that may be performed to determine an exertion recommendationin accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 16 illustrates an example computing module that may be used toimplement features of various embodiments of the present disclosure.

It should be noted that the figures are provided for purposes ofillustration only, and merely depict typical or example embodiments ofthe present disclosure. The figures are not intended to be exhaustive orto limit the disclosure to the precise form disclosed. Indeed, otherfeatures and aspects of the disclosed technology will become apparent toone of ordinary skill in the art upon reviewing the following detaileddescription in connection with the accompanying drawings. It should alsobe understood that the disclosure is not intended to limit the scope ofany embodiments described herein, which are limited solely by the claimsattached hereto.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed toward systems,methods and devices for providing an exertion recommendation for ananticipated exercise session, the exertion recommendation being based,in whole or in part, on one or more prior measures of exertion and/orresponse profile during a previous exercise session. The determinationof the user's exertion is, in various embodiments, based on biometricdata gathered from sensors that may be worn by the user. Similarly, thedetermination of the user's performance capacity (i.e. response profile)is, in various embodiments, based on biometric data and/or activity datagathered from sensors that may be worn by the user. The details of someexample embodiments of the systems, methods, and devices of the presentdisclosure are set forth in more detail in the description below. Otherfeatures, objects, and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent toone of skill in the art upon examination of the present description,figures, examples, and claims. It is intended that all such systems,methods, features, objects and advantages be included within the scopeof the present disclosure, and be protected by one or more of theaccompanying claims.

In particular embodiments, systems and methods for providing such anexertion recommendation are implemented using activity monitoringdevices embodied in one or more of an earphone, a wristband, anelectronic capsule, or other computing device or apparatus as describedin more detail below with reference to FIGS. 1-16. It should be notedthat the activity monitoring devices depicted in these Figures areprovided for purposes of illustration only and merely depict typical orexample implementations and embodiments of the technology disclosedherein. Prior to introducing details of the exertion recommendationdetermination, a discussion of the exemplary activity monitoring deviceswith which this technology may be implemented is appropriate. Althoughthe discussion of each figure should be considered in the context of theentire disclosure, simply for clarity it is noted that FIGS. 1-12directed more particularly toward a discussion of the structure,architecture, and component features of the activity monitoring deviceswith which the presently disclosed technology may be implemented, andFIGS. 13A-15B are directed more particularly toward the detailssurrounding the various operations that may be performed as part of thesystems, methods, and devices of the present disclosure to determine andprovide exertion as a measure of accumulated exercise intensity.

FIG. 1 depicts an example communications environment 100, which may beused in connection with implementing embodiments of the disclosedsystems, methods, and devices. As shown, communications environment 100may include wristband 105 and/or earphones 110. As will be described indetail herein, wristband 105 and earphones 110 may be used to monitoractivity and/or measure biometrics. Additionally, wristband 105 andearphones 110 may be operatively coupled to computing device 120, whichin the illustrated example is a mobile device. This coupling may beimplemented in some examples using links 125 and 130, which in variousinstances may be a wired or wireless connection.

Computing device 120 may collect additional information from theuser—such as biometrics and activity information—which may be used tosupplement or be used in place of information received from wristband105 or earphones 110. Computing device 120 may include a variety ofelectronic computing devices, such as, for example, a smartphone,tablet, laptop, and the like. In such cases, computing device 120 may beconfigured to receive biometrics and/or activity information from one ormore of wristband 105 and earphones 110 over one or more of links 125and 130. Further, in some embodiments, computing device 120 may includea graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying and interacting with oneor more of wristband 105 and/or earphones 110, including by interactingwith data collected by and received from wristband 105 and/or earphones110, and by controlling the operation of wristband 105 and/or earphones110.

Here it will be noted that the GUI of computing device 120 mayadditionally perform functions such as accepting user input anddisplaying processed biometric and/or activity data to the user. The GUImay be provided by various operating systems known in the art, such as,for example, iOS, Android, Windows Mobile, Windows, Mac OS, Chrome OS,Linux, Unix, a gaming platform OS (e.g., Xbox, PlayStation, Wii), etc.In various embodiments, links 125 and 130 may be based on one or morewireless communication protocols such as Bluetooth, ZigBee, 802.11protocols, Infrared (IR), Radio Frequency (RF), 2G, 3G, 4G, etc.

FIG. 2 depicts an exploded cross-sectional view of example embodimentsof wristband 105. FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of wristband105. Aspects of FIGS. 2 and 3 will be described together. As depicted,wristband 105 includes band portion 200 and electronic capsule 300.Electronic capsule 300 includes various electronic components, asdepicted in a simplified manner in FIG. 2. Further as depicted,electronic capsule 300 may be a removable/detachable component that maybe coupled to and removable/detachable from band portion 200. This maybe accomplished in a variety of ways, e.g., magnetic attraction forces,snap-fit/friction, etc. In other cases, electronic capsule 300 may beintegrally formed with band portion 200.

Electronic capsule 300 may include various components, such as battery330, logic circuits 340, casing 350, and one or more of a wristbiosensor 310, finger biosensor 320, and/or a motion sensor (e.g.,accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, or other inertial measurementunit). Typically, at least one of wrist biosensor 310 and fingerbiosensor 320 is a heart rate sensor configured to detect the heart rateof a wearer of wristband 105. In some embodiments, finger biosensor 320protrudes outwardly from a first side (i.e., the top) of casing 350 ofelectronic capsule 300, and wrist biosensor protrudes outwardly from asecond side (i.e., the bottom) of casing 350. As depicted, aperture 230of band portion 200 substantially matches the dimensional profile offinger biosensor 320, such that finger biosensor 320 may be exposed andaccessible to the touch of a user's finger through aperture 230 whenwristband 105 is worn by the user. In various embodiments, battery 330,logic circuits 340, and an optional motion sensor are enclosed inside ofcasing 350. Battery 330 is electronically coupled and supplies power tologic circuits 340. By way of example, logic circuits 340 may byimplemented using printed circuit boards (PCBs). Although wristband 105is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 as including both wrist biosensor 310 andfinger biosensor 320, some embodiments include only one or the other.

Casing 350 may be made of various materials known in the art, including,for example, molded plastic, silicone, rubber, or another moldablematerial. Additionally, casing 350 may be sealed using an ultrasonicwelding process to be substantially water tight, thus protectingelectronic capsule 300 from the elements. Further, wristband 105 may beconfigured to encircle (either partially as in FIG. 2, or entirely as inFIG. 3) a wrist or other limb (e.g., ankle, etc.) of a human, animal, orother object. In one embodiment, wristband 105 is adjustable insize/fit. In some embodiments, a cavity 220 is notched on the radiallyinward facing side of band 200 and shaped to substantially the samedimensions as the profile of electronic capsule 300. In addition,aperture 230 may be located in the material 210 of band 200 withincavity 220. Aperture 230 may be shaped to substantially the samedimensions as the profile of the finger biosensor 320. As shown, cavity220 and aperture 230 are in combination designed to detachably couple toelectronic capsule 300 such that, when electronic capsule 300 ispositioned inside cavity 220, finger biosensor 320 protrudes at leastpartially into—and sometimes protruding through the top of—aperture 230such that at least a portion of the electronic capsule 300 may beexposed to the touch of a user's finger. Electronic capsule 300 mayfurther include one or more magnets 360 configured to secure electroniccapsule 300 in cavity 220. Magnets 360 may be concealed in casing 350.Alternatively, cavity 220 may be configured to conceal magnets 360 whenelectronic capsule 300 detachably couples in cavity 220.

Wristband 105 may further include a ferromagnetic metal strip 240concealed in band portion 200 within cavity 220. In such a case, whenelectronic capsule 300 is positioned within cavity 220, magnets 360 areattracted to ferromagnetic strip 240 and pull electronic capsule 300radially outward with respect to band portion 200. The force provided bymagnets 360 may detachably secure electronic capsule 300 inside cavity220. In alternative embodiments, electronic capsule 300 may bepositioned inside cavity 220 and be affixed therein using a form-fit,press-fit, snap-fit, friction-fit, VELCRO, or other temporary adhesionor attachment technology.

In some embodiments, logic circuits 340 include an a motion sensor thatincludes an inertial measurement unit (e.g., one or more of a gyroscope,accelerometer, and magnetometer, etc.), a wireless transmitter, andadditional circuitry. Logic circuits 340 may be configured to processelectronic signals from biosensors (e.g., finger biosensor 320 and wristbiosensor 310) and/or motion sensors, convert/store the electronicsignals as data, and output the data via the transmitter (e.g., usingwireless protocols described herein). In other scenarios, this data maybe output using a wired connection (e.g., USB, fiber optic, HDMI, or thelike).

Referring again to electronic capsule 300, in some embodiments theelectronic signals processed by logic circuits 340 include an activationtime signal and a recovery time signal. In these embodiments, logiccircuits 340 may process the electronic signals to calculate anactivation recovery interval equal to the difference between theactivation time signal and the recovery time signal. The electronicsignals may include heart rate information collected by and receivedfrom one or more of the wrist biosensor 310 and finger biosensor 320.Further still the electronic signals may include electro-cardio signalsfrom a user's heart. In these embodiments, logic circuits 340 mayprocess the electro-cardio signals to calculate and store an RR-intervaland determine a heart rate. The RR-interval may be the delta in timebetween two R-waves, where the R-waves are the electro-cardio signalsgenerated by a ventricle contraction in the heart. The RR-interval mayfurther be used to calculate and store a heart rate variability (HRV)value that indicates the variation over time of the time delta betweenconsecutive heartbeats. In some embodiments, logic circuits 340 mayconvey the electronic signals to, e.g., computing device 120, by atransmitter, such that computing device 120 may perform variouscalculations (e.g., of HRV, HR, Exercise Intensity, Exertion Value,Exertion Load, Exertion Index etc.).

In some instances, finger biosensor 320 and wrist biosensor 310 may bereplaced or supplemented by a single biosensor configured to detect andmeasure biometric information (e.g. HR, HRV, etc.). In some embodiments,the single biosensor may be an optical biosensor such as a pulseoximeter configured to detect blood oxygen saturation levels. The pulseoximeter may output electronic signal(s) to logic circuits 340indicating a detected cardiac cycle phase and/or heart rate, and logiccircuits 340 may use such information (e.g. the cardiac cycle phaseand/or heart rate data) to further calculate an HRV value, or logiccircuits 340 may convey the information to, e.g., computing device 120,by a transmitter such that computing device 120 may perform variouscalculations (e.g., of HRV, HR, etc.). Logic circuits 340, in someembodiments, may further detect and store metrics based on motiondetection, such as the amount of physical activity, sleep, or rest, overa period of time, or the amount of time with or without physicalactivity over a period of time. In other embodiments, logic circuits 340may detect and store metrics based on heart rate detection, such as theuser's exercise intensity and/or exertion over a period of time orduring a particular activity (e.g. an exercise session, a 24 hourperiod, etc.). Providing and determining exercise intensity and exertionwill be discussed in further detail in connection with FIGS. 13A-13F.

FIG. 4 illustrates a cross-sectional view of one embodiment of wristband105 when assembled with electronic capsule 300. In this embodiment,electronic capsule 300 is positioned inside cavity 220 such that fingerbiosensor 320 is partially disposed in and exposed through aperture 230.Wrist biosensor 310 protrudes from the radially inward facing side bandportion 200. In this configuration, wrist biosensor 310 may contact theskin on the wearer's limb (e.g. wrist, ankle, etc.) when the wristband105 is worn.

FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of electronic capsule 300. As depicted,finger biosensor 320 may protrude from a first side of electroniccapsule 300, and wrist biosensor 310 may protrude from a second side ofelectronic capsule 300. Casing 350 encloses components of electroniccapsule 300. Casing 350 may include moldable plastic. Alternatively,casing 350 may include metal, rubber, composite material, or another,moldable material. In one embodiment, casing 350 is ultrasonicallywelded together to make the casing water tight and/or resistant. Inalternative embodiments, other methods may be used to make the casingwater tight/resistant.

FIG. 6 illustrates another cross-sectional view of electronic capsule300. In the illustrated embodiment, finger biosensor 320 protrudes froma first side of electronic capsule 300, and wrist biosensor 310protrudes from a second side of electronic capsule 300. Both fingerbiosensor 320 and wrist biosensor 310 are electronically coupled tologic circuits 340.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of two possible variants of band 200 thatmay be used in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein. Each band200 in this embodiment includes flexible material, an aperture 230 isdisposed on/in each band 200. Electronic capsule's 300 depicted in, e.g.FIGS. 2-5, may be sized so as to be easily removed from one band 200 aand placed in another band 200 b. Bands 200 a, 200 b may also beconstructed with different dimensions, including different diameters,widths, and thicknesses, in order to accommodate different sized/shapedlimbs and appendages, as well as wearer preferences. In one embodiment,bands 200 a, 200 b may be adjustable to accommodate differentsizes/shapes of limbs. Further, bands 200 a, 200 b may be made indifferent colors, and different flexible materials, such as silicone,plastic, metal chain links, composite material, leather, syntheticleather, fabric, or other flexible materials.

In some embodiments an electronic capsule (e.g. electronic capsule 300of FIG. 5) may be detachably coupled to various other locations besidesband 200. For example, an electronic capsule may be attached to a user'sshoe and/or sock, coupled to sports equipment (e.g. the handle of aracket or bicycle) such that one of biosensors 310 or 320 may contactparts of a user's body. In such embodiments, band 200 may be eliminatedaltogether, and electronic capsule 300 may be used in connection withcomputing device 120 to implement the technology provided in thisdisclosure (compute and provide exertion as a measure of accumulatedexercise intensity).

Electronic capsules 300 used in accordance with some embodiments of thepresently disclosed technology may include one or more optical sensorssuch as a heart rate sensor or oximeter. In such embodiments, forexample, the oximeter may sense heart rate and/or HRV by detecting bloodoxygenation level changes as changes in coloration at the surface of auser's skin. The optical sensor may be positioned to face radiallyinward towards a limb when wristband 105 is worn. Alternatively, theoptical sensor may be separate from electronic capsule 300, but stilldetachably coupled to band 200 and/or electronically coupled to circuitboards that may be enclosed in electronic capsule 300 (e.g., wirelesslycoupled or otherwise).

Referring again to FIG. 1, in various embodiments, computing device 120may receive, process and/or display data collected, determined, and/orprocessed by logic circuits 340, thereby allowing the user to interactwith wristband 105 and/or otherwise monitor the user's activity and/orbiometrics, as will be further described herein. Additionally, computingdevice 120 may itself be used to collect additional activity monitoringand/or biometric data using sensors (e.g. biosensors, motion sensors,etc.) included in computing device 120. Further still, computing device120 may be bi-directionally communicatively coupled (e.g., by links 125and 130) with wristband 105 such that computing device 120 may be usedto configure the functionality of logic circuits 340. In such cases,logic circuits 340 include a receiver as well as a transmitter, and/or atransceiver.

In other embodiments, computing device 120 may connect to the Internetand receive biometric and/or activity data gathered by wristband 105(via electronic components in electronic capsule 300) over a webbrowser. For example, the wristband 105 may gather/process biometric,activity, and other data, and transmit that data to a remote fileserver, such that computing device 120 may then access the data from theremote file server without directly linking to wristband 105. In yetfurther embodiments, computing device 120 may be mechanically coupled,electrically coupled, or both mechanically and electrically coupled towristband 105, such that communication can take place over a wired ornear-field connection.

FIG. 8A illustrates a perspective view of earphones 110. FIG. 8A willgenerally be described in conjunction with FIG. 8B, which illustrates anexample architecture of circuitry that may be used to implement thedisclosed technology with earphones 110. Earphones 110 include earphone800 a, which may correspond to a wearer's left ear, and earphone 800 b,which may correspond to a wearer's right ear. Generally, the aspectsdescribed herein with respect to earphone 800 a may apply equally toearphone 800 b, and vice versa. As shown in FIG. 8A, earphones 800 a and800 b include respective tips 810 a and 810 b. Earphones 110 may alsoinclude controller 820 and cable 815. Cable 815 electrically couplesearphones 800 a and 800 b to one another, and also couples earphones 800a, 800 b to controller 820. Additionally, earphones 800 a, 800 b may insome cases include fin 825 that contacts folds in the outer ear anatomyof the wearer in order to further secure the earphones 800 a and/or 800b to the wearer's ear. Although FIG. 8A only depicts a single fin 825coupled to earphone 800 b, it is noted that a similar fin may bedetachably coupled to earphone 800 a as well, or no such fins may beused at all. Additionally, although FIG. 8A depicts a pair of wirelessearphones (i.e. connected wirelessly to a computing device such ascomputing device 120), wired earphones may also be used in accordancewith the present disclosure to implement the technology presentedherein.

Earphones 110 may be constructed to have various dimensions, includingdifferent diameters, widths, and thicknesses, in order to accommodatedifferent human or animal ear sizes and different preferences. In someembodiments of earphones 110, the housing of each earphone 800 a and 800b is a rigid shell that surrounds electronic components within. In someembodiments, these electronic components may include one or more or allof the components described above with respect to electronic capsule 300(e.g. biosensors, motion sensors, batteries, logic circuits, wirelesstransmitters/receivers etc.). In other embodiments, referring now toFIG. 8B, examples of the electronic components include one or more of amotion sensor 835, optical heartrate sensor 830, audio-electroniccomponents such as drivers 870 a, 870 b and speakers 805 a, 805 b, andother circuitry (e.g., processors 845, 850, and memories 840, 855). Oneor more of these components may optionally reside outside of earphones800 a, 800 b, for example, in controller 820 or elsewhere. The rigidshell of the housing may be made with plastic, metal, rubber, or othermaterials known in the art. The housing may be cubic shaped, prismshaped, tubular shaped, cylindrical shaped, or otherwise shaped to housethe electronic components or to fit well within a wearer's ear.

Referring back to FIG. 8A, tips 810 a, 810 b may be rounded, parabolic,and/or semi-spherical, so as to comfortably and securely fit within awearer's ear, with the distal end of tip 810 a, 810 b contacting aportion of the wearer's outer ear canal. In some embodiments, tip 810 a,810 b is removable so as to be exchanged with alternate tips of varyingdimensions, colors, or designs to accommodate a wearer's preferenceand/or fit more closely match the radial profile of the wearer's outerear canal. Tip 810 a, 810 b may be made with softer materials such asrubber, silicone, fabric, or other materials as would be appreciated byone of ordinary skill in the art upon studying the present disclosure.

Controller 820 may provide various controls (e.g., buttons and switches)related to media playback, such as, for example, volume adjustment,track skipping, audio track pausing, and the like. Additionally,controller 820 may include various controls related to the gathering ofbiometrics and/or activity information, such as, for example, controlsfor enabling or disabling heart rate and/or motion detection. Controller820 may be of a simple design having, for example, three buttons toperform various of the controls described herein. The buttons ofcontroller may be used in a variety of patterns to control the functionand performance of earphones 110 in a variety of ways. For example,double-clicking the middle button may enable and disable heart ratedetection; or holding the top button for two seconds followed by holdingthe bottom button for one second may cause the earphones to generate anaudible readout of a user's current heart rate or other measurement(e.g. exercise intensity, exertion, etc.) via speakers 805 a, 805 b.

With reference to FIG. 8B, the circuitry of earphones 110 may includeprocessors 845, 850 (including, in some instances, logic circuitssimilar to logic circuits 340), memories 840, 855, wireless transceiver860, battery 825, power circuitry 865, and other circuitry for earphones800 a, 800 b. As further illustrated, earphone 800 a may include motionsensor 835, optical heartrate sensor 830 (or other biosensor), speaker805 a, and driver 870 a. Earphone 800 b may include speaker 805 b anddriver 870 b. Although motion sensor 835 and optical heart rate sensor(or other biosensor) 830 are depicted as being embodied within earphone800 a, it is noted that either one or both of motion sensor 835 and/oroptical heart rate sensor (or other biosensor) 830 may be embodied in,distributed throughout, or duplicated within any one or more of earphone800 a, earphone 800 b, or controller 820. For example, in someembodiments, earphone 800 b may also include a motion sensor (e.g., anaccelerometer or gyroscope, generally, similar to motion sensor 835),and/or a biosensor (e.g., optical heartrate sensor 830). In otherembodiments, earphone 800 a includes the motion sensor 835 and earphone800 b includes the biosensor 830, and so on. In particular, motionsensor 835, including any subcomponents thereof (e.g., as describedabove), and/or optical heartrate sensor 830 or other biosensor 830 maybe included entirely within a single earphone (e.g., earphone 800 a),may be distributed between two earphones 800 a, 800 b, or may beduplicated within each earphone 800 a, 800 b in any combination foradded precision, such that each earphone 800 a, 800 b in the pair candetect and activity and biometrics information as desired for particularapplications.

Processor 845 may include logic circuits for receiving, processing,and/or storing information gathered by biosensors (e.g., opticalheartrate sensor 830) and/or motion sensor 835. More particularly, asillustrated in FIG. 8B, processor 845 may be coupled (e.g., by wired orwireless connection) to motion sensor 835 and/or optical heartratesensor 830 (or other biosensor), and hence may receive and processelectrical signals generated by these sensors 835 and/or 830 in responseto the wearer's motion and/or biometrics, respectively. Processor 845may store such signals or processed versions thereof as biometric dataand/or activity data in memory 840, which biometric data and/or activitydata may be made available to a computing device 120 using wirelesstransceiver 860. In some embodiments, memory 840 stores biometric dataand/or activity data for transmission by wireless transceiver 860 tocomputing device 120 for further processing thereby.

During operation, optical heartrate sensor 830 may use aphotoplethysmogram (PPG) to optically obtain the user's heart rate. Inone embodiment, optical heartrate sensor 830 includes a pulse oximeterthat detects blood oxygenation level changes as changes in coloration atthe surface of a user's skin. More particularly, in this embodiment,optical heartrate sensor 830 illuminates the skin of the user's earusing a light-emitting diode (LED). Light from the LED penetratesthrough the epidermal layers of the skin to underlying blood vessels. Aportion of the light is absorbed, while a portion of the light isreflected back to optical heartrate sensor 830. The light reflected backthrough the skin of the user's ear is then obtained with a receiver(e.g., a photodiode) and used to detect changes in the user's bloodoxygen saturation (SpO₂) and pulse rate, thereby permitting calculationof the user's heart rate using algorithms known in the art (e.g., usingprocessor 840). Optical heartrate sensor 830 may be positioned on one ofearphones 800 a, 800 b such that optical heartrate sensor 830 isproximal to the interior side of a user's tragus when earphones 110 areworn. In other embodiments, optical heartrate sensor 830 may bepositioned on one of earphones 800 a, 800 b so as to be proximal to anyother portion of the user's ear (e.g. concha, ear lobe, pinna,antitragus, outer ear canal, etc.) when earphone 800 a, 800 b is worn bythe user.

In this manner, optical heartrate sensor 830 may also be used togenerate biometrics that may be used calculate or estimate the wearer'sheart rate variability (HRV), i.e. the variation in time intervalbetween consecutive heartbeats. For example, processor 845 or aprocessor resident in computing device 120 may calculate HRV using thebiometrics gathered by optical heartrate sensor 830 based on a timedomain methods, frequency domain methods, and/or other methods known inthe art that estimate/calculate HRV based on data such as mean heartrate, change in pulse rate over a time interval, and other data used inthe art to estimate/calculate HRV. These methods of calculating HRV mayalso be applied with respect to biometrics gathered using wristband 105discussed in connection with FIGS. 1-7.

In further embodiments, logic circuits of processor 845 may furtherdetect, calculate, and/or store activity data, based on measuredactivity of the wearer, such as the wearer's amount of physical activity(e.g., exercise and the like), sleep, or rest over a period of time, orthe amount of time without physical activity over a period of time. Thelogic circuits may use the HRV or HR, the activity data, or somecombination of the these to gauge the wearer's response to the activityand other external factors (e.g., temperature, weather, stress, etc.).In various embodiments, the user's response may indicate the user'sphysical condition and aptitude for further physical activity for thecurrent or next day. In further embodiments, logic circuits may use theHR detected by biosensor 830 (e.g. optical heartrate sensor 830) tocompute the user's exercise intensity, and determine/provide the user'sexertion value, exertion index, and/or exertion load, as described infurther detail herein. These computations and determinations may also beapplied with respect to biometrics (e.g. HR) gathered using wristband105 discussed in connection with FIGS. 1-7.

Referring again to FIG. 8B, during audio playback, earphones 110 maywirelessly receive audio data using wireless transceiver 860. The audiodata may then be processed by logic circuits of processor 850, forexample, to be converted into electrical signals and delivered torespective drivers 870 a, 870 b of speakers 805 a, 805 b, such that theelectrical signals may be converted to sound. Drivers 870 a, 870 b mayuse various driver technologies known in the art, for example, movingcoil drivers, electrostatic drivers, electret drivers, orthodynamicdrivers, and other transducer technologies may be used. In someembodiments, the biometrics and other computations and determinationsmay be provided to the user via an audible sound through one or more ofthe speakers 805 a, 805 b. For example, a user's exertion value may bedetermined by logic circuits to be 9.3 (based on biometrics detected bybiosensor 830), and upon request from the user (e.g. via pressing thecontroller 820 buttons in an appropriate pattern, or otherwise) aprogrammed voice may recite the words “your exertion at present isnine-point-three,” or the like.

Wireless transceiver 860 may be configured to transmit/receive biometricdata, and/or activity data, and/or audio data across link 125 and 130,for example using available wireless communications protocols/standardsor methods. In some embodiments, wireless transceiver 860 may utilizeBLUETOOTH, ZIGBEE, Wi-Fi, GPS, cellular technology, or some combinationthereof. Further, although FIG. 8B illustrates a single wirelesstransceiver 860 for transmitting/receiving biometrics, activity andaudio data, in an alternative embodiment, separate transceivers may bededicated for communicating biometric data to/from computing device 120,for communicating activity data to/from computing device 120, and forcommunicating audio data to/from computing device 120. In some cases,transceiver 860 may include a low energy transmitter such as a nearfield communications (NFC) transmitter or a BLUETOOTH low energy (LE)transmitter. In further example implementations, a separate wirelessreceiver may be provided for receiving high fidelity audio data from anaudio source. In yet additional embodiments, a wired interface (e.g.,micro-USB) may be used for communicating data stored in memories 840and/or 855.

FIG. 8B also shows that earphones 110 may be powered by battery 825,which may be coupled to power circuitry 865. Any suitable battery orpower supply technologies known in the art may be used. For example, alithium-ion battery, aluminum-ion battery, piezo or vibration energyharvesters, photovoltaic cells, or other like devices may be used. Insome deployments of earphones 110, battery 825 may be enclosed in one ormore of earphone 800 a or 800 b. Alternatively, battery 825 may beenclosed in controller 820. The circuitry of earphones 110 describedherein may be configured to enter a low-power or inactive mode whenearphones 110 are not in use, or in other scenarios where low-poweroperation is appropriate. For example, mechanisms such as an on/offswitch, a BLUETOOTH transmission disabling command, or the like may beprovided by controller 820, such that a user may manually control theon/off state of one or more power-consuming components or circuits ofearphones 110.

It should be noted that in various embodiments, processors 845 and 850,memories 840 and 855, wireless transceiver 860, battery 825, and powercircuitry 865 may be enclosed in and/or distributed throughout either orboth of earphone 800 a, earphone 800 b, and controller 820. For example,processor 845 and memory 840 may be enclosed in earphone 800 a alongwith optical heartrate sensor 830 and motion sensor 835. In thisparticular scenario, these components may be electrically coupled to oneor more printed circuit boards (PCBs) enclosed in earphone 800 a.Additionally, any one or more of these components may be duplicated ineach of earphones 800 a, 800 b. It should also be noted that althoughprocessors 845 and 850 are illustrated as being separate from oneanother, the functions of processors 845 and 850 may be integrated intoa single processor.

FIG. 9A illustrates a perspective view of embodiments of earphone 800 b.As shown, earphone 800 b may include optical heartrate sensor 830, asgenerally described above. FIG. 9A will also be described in conjunctionwith FIGS. 9B and 9C, which show various perspective views illustratingexample arrangements/orientations of optical heartrate sensor 830 whenearphone 800 b (or 800 a) is worn in a user's ear 900. As shown,earphone 800 b may include housing 935, tip 810 b, fin 825, and opticalheartrate sensor 830. Optical heartrate sensor 830 protrudes from afrontal side of housing 935, proximal to tip 810 b, and proximal to anozzle (not shown, but within the hollow of the tip 810 b) of earphone800 b. FIGS. 9B and 9C illustrate interface 925 of optical heartratesensor 830 and ear 900 when earphone 800 b is worn in a user's ear 900.In the illustrated embodiments, when earphone 800 b is worn, opticalheartrate sensor 830 is proximal to the interior side of the user'stragus 905. In various embodiments, earphones 800 a, 800 b may bedual-fit earphones shaped to be comfortably and securely worn in eitheran over-the-ear configuration or an under-the-ear configuration. Thesecure fit provided in such embodiments aids in keeping opticalheartrate sensor 830 positioning on the interior side of tragus 860,thereby ensuring accurate and consistent measurements of a user's heartrate and/or other biometric information.

FIGS. 9D and 9E illustrate earphones 950 in an over-the-earconfiguration, where FIG. 9F illustrates earphones 950 in anunder-the-ear configuration. As illustrated, earphone 950 includeshousing 910, tip 920, strain relief 930, and cable 940. The proximal endof tip 920 mechanically couples to the housing 910 near the distal endof the housing, often by coupling to an extension of the housing calleda nozzle. Similarly, the distal end of strain relief 930 mechanicallycouples to a side (e.g., the top side) of housing 910. Furthermore, thedistal end of cable 940 may be disposed within (or simply coupled to)and secured by the proximal end of strain relief 930.

Referring to FIGS. 9E and 9F, the longitudinal axis of housing 910,H_(x), forms angle θ₁ with respect to the longitudinal axis of tip 920,T. The longitudinal axis of strain relief 930, S_(y), may align with theproximal end of strain relief 930 and form angle θ₂ with respect to theaxis H. In some embodiments, θ₁ is greater than 0 degrees, e.g., T_(x)extends in at an angle from H_(x), or in other words, tip 920 may beangled with respect to housing 910. The value of θ₁ may be selected toapproximate the ear canal angle of the wearer. For example, θ₁ may rangebetween 5 degrees and 15 degrees, and may extend from 0 degrees 45degrees. Also, θ₂ may be less than 90 degrees, e.g., such that S_(y)extends at a non-orthogonal angle from H_(x), or in other words, strainrelief 930 is angled with respect to a perpendicular orientation withhousing 910. In some embodiments, θ₂ may be selected to direct thedistal end of cable 940 closer to the wearer's ear. For example, θ₂ mayrange between 75 degrees and 89 degrees, but may extend to as low as 45degrees in some situations.

As further illustrated in FIGS. 9E and 9F, X₁ may represent the distancebetween the distal end of tip 920, on the one hand, and the intersectionof strain relief 930's longitudinal axis S_(y) and housing longitudinalaxis H_(x), on the other hand. One of skill in the art will appreciate,upon studying the present disclosure, that the dimension X₁ may beselected based on several parameters, including, for example, thedesired fit to a wearer's ear based on the average human ear anatomicaldimensions, the types and dimensions of electronic components (e.g.,optical heartrate sensor 830, motion sensor 835, processors 845 and 850,memories 840 and 855, other components described in connectiontherewith, and so on) that may be disposed within housing 910 and tip920, and based on the specific placement of optical heartrate sensor830. In some examples, X₁ may be at least 18 mm. However, in otherexamples, X₁ may be smaller or greater based on the parameters discussedabove.

Referring again to FIGS. 9E and 9F, X₂ may represent the distancebetween the proximal end of strain relief 930 and the surface of thewearer's ear/neck/head. In the configuration illustrated in FIG. 9E, θ₂may be selected to reduce X₂, as well as to direct cable 940 toward thewearer's ear, such that cable 940 may rest in the crevice formed wherethe top of the wearer's ear meets the side of the wearer's head. In someembodiments, θ2 may range between 75 degrees and 89 degrees, but mayextend to as low as 45 degrees in some situations. In the configurationillustrated in FIG. 9F, θ₂ may be selected to reduce X₂, as well as todirect cable 940 near to the profile of the user's head/neck so as toavoid obstructions as nearly as possible while the user performs variousactivities.

In some examples, strain relief 930 may be made of a flexible materialsuch as rubber, silicone, or soft plastic, so as to enable strain relief930 to be bent toward the wearer's ear. Similarly, strain relief 930 mayinclude a shape memory material so as to retain the shape thereof afterbeing bent inward. In some examples, strain relief 930 may be shaped tocurve inward towards the wearer's ear.

As one having skill in the art will appreciate from the foregoingdiscussion, that earphones 110 and wristband 105 may in variousembodiments gather biometric data and activity data that may be used totrack a user's activities and activity level. The biometric data andactivity data may then be made available to computing device 120, whichmay provide a GUI for interacting with the data using a trackingapplication installed on computing device 120. FIG. 10A is a blockdiagram illustrating example components of computing device 120,including an installed tracking application (occasionally referred to asan app) 1015.

With continued reference to FIG. 10A, computing device 120 may includeconnectivity interface 1005, storage 1010 that stores trackingapplication 1015, processor 1020, graphical user interface (GUI) 1025that may be provided on display 1030, and bus 1035 for transferring databetween the various components of computing device 120. Connectivityinterface 1005 connects computing device 120 to earphones 110 and/orwristband 105 through a communication medium (e.g., links 125 and 130).Storage 1010 may include volatile memory (e.g. RAM), non-volatile memory(e.g. flash storage), or some combination/variation thereof. In variousembodiments, storage 1010 may store biometric data and/or activity datacollected by earphones 110 and/or wristband 105. Additionally, storage1010 may store tracking application 1015 that, when executed byprocessor 1020, receives input (e.g., by a conventional hard/soft key ora touch screen, voice detection, or other input mechanism), and allows auser to interact with the collected biometric and/or activity data.

In various embodiments, a user may interact with tracking application1015 via GUI 1025, which may be provided by display 1030, for example,via a touchscreen display that accepts various hand gestures as inputs.Tracking application 1015 may process the biometric and/or activity datacollected by earphones 110 and/or wristband 105, and present the datavia display 1030. Before describing tracking application 1015 in furtherdetail, it should be noted that in some embodiments earphones 110 andband 105 may filter and/or preprocess the collected biometric andactivity data prior to transmitting the same to computing device 120.Accordingly, although the embodiments disclosed herein are describedwith reference to tracking application 1015 processing the receiveddata, in various implementations, preprocessing operations, and/or anyone or more of the other processing operations disclosed herein, may beperformed by processors 845 or 850 of earphones 110, or by logiccircuits 340, prior to transmission of the data to computing device 120.

Tracking application 1015 may be initially configured/setup (e.g., afterinstallation on a smartphone or other computing device 120) based on auser's self-reported biological information, sleep information, andactivity preference information. For example, during setup, the user maybe prompted via display 1030 to enter biological information such as theuser's gender, height, age, weight, etc. In other examples, during setup(or at another time thereafter), the user may be prompted via display1030 to enter known or estimated biometric or other information such asthe user's maximum achieved heartrate, the user's resting heart rate,the user's average activity level during a normal day, etc. Further,during setup the user may also be prompted for sleep information, suchas the amount of sleep needed by the user and the user's regularbed/wake time. Further still, the user may be prompted during setup fora preferred activity level and/or intensity, as well as their goals forthe same, as well as particular types of activities the user desires tobe tracked (e.g., running, walking, swimming, dancing, biking, hiking,etc.) In various embodiments of the disclosure, this self-reportedinformation may be used in tandem with the information collected byearphones 110 and/or wristband 105. For example, a user may initiallyenter an estimate that their resting heart rate is 100 beats per minute(BPM), but as the user uses earphones 110 and/or wristband 105 thebiosensors therein detect that the user's resting heart rate is/hasbecome 105 BPM, and thereby may update the biometrics stored for thegiven user. In some embodiments these updates (i.e. learning) take placeautomatically, and in other embodiments are only incorporated uponprompting the user (e.g. via display 1030) regarding the change andreceiving an approval by the user to make the change. In this way, oneor more of computing device 120, earphones 110, and/or wristband 105 maylearn—automatically, or in a prompt-by-prompt fashion—details about theuser that may be incorporated in providing a more granular view of theuser's exercise intensity, exertion, recovery, performance profile, etc.

Following the setup, tracking application 1015 may be used by a user tomonitor activity and biometrics of the user (e.g., based on informationcollected from sensors 835 and 830). As further illustrated in FIG. 10B,tracking application 1015 may include various modules, such as, forexample display module 1050, biosensor module 1055, exertion module1060, and motion sensor module 1065. These modules may be implementedseparately or in combination. Each module may include computer-readablemedia and have computer-executable code stored thereon (or stored onand/or accessible via other storage locations on storage 1010), suchthat the code may be executed by processor 1020 (e.g., in some cases inconjunction with other processing modules 1070) to perform specificfunctions and/or transformations (e.g., as described herein with regardto various flow charts, etc.) with respect to biometric and/or activitydata available to tracking application 1015 through the variouscomponents of computing device 120. As will be further described below,display module 1050 may present (e.g., via display 1030) various screensto a user, with the screens containing graphical representations ofinformation provided by tracking application 1015. In furtherembodiments, tracking application 1015 may be used to display to theuser an instruction for wearing and/or adjusting earphones 110.

FIG. 11 is an operational flow diagram illustrating an example method1100 that provides an earphone adjustment feedback loop to increase thelikelihood of accurate biometric data collection by earphones 110. Atoperation 1110, tracking application 1015 may be executed, which may inturn result in displaying an instruction to the user on how towear/adjust earphones 110 to obtain an accurate and reliable signal fromoptical heartrate sensor 830 and/or motion sensor 835. Operation 1110may occur only once, upon installation of tracking application 1015, mayoccur once per day (e.g., when the user first wears earphones 110 in theday), or at any customizable, programmable, and/or predeterminedinterval. Indeed, method 1100 may automatically prompt the user toadjust the earphones upon detecting a low signal quality (e.g. low S/Nratio).

Operation 1120 involves providing feedback (e.g., by a display such asdisplay 1030 on computing device 120) to the user regarding the qualityof the signal received from one or both of optical heartrate sensor 830and/or motion sensor 835, based on the positioning of earphones 110. Forexample, a signal quality bar or other graphical elements may bedisplayed to the user. Alternatively, an audio signal and/or vibrationsignal may be used to provide the feedback or indicate that adjustmentsneed to be made.

At decision 1130, it is determined if the biosensor signal quality issatisfactory for accurate biometric and activity data to begathered/used. In various embodiments, this determination may be basedon factors such as, for example, the frequency with which opticalheartrate sensor 830 is collecting heart rate data and/or with whichmotion sensor 835 is collecting activity information, the variance inthe measurements of optical heartrate sensor 830 and/or activityinformation (including location-based information), dropouts in heartrate measurements by sensor 830, the signal-to-noise ratio approximationof optical heartrate sensor 830 and/or motion sensor 835, the amplitudeof the signals generated by sensors 835 and/or 830, and the like.

If the signal quality is determined (e.g., at decision 1130) to beunsatisfactory, at operation 1040, tracking application 1015 may displayinstructions for adjusting earphones 110 to improve the signal, andoperations 1120 and decision 1130 may subsequently be repeated. Forexample, instruction on adjusting strain relief 930 of earphone 950 maybe displayed. Otherwise, if the signal quality is satisfactory, atoperation 1150, tracking application 1015 may display confirmation ofgood signal quality and/or good position of earphones 110. Subsequently,tracking application 1015 may proceed with normal operation.

As one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, method 1100 maysimilarly be applied in the context of wristband 105—replacing“EARPHONES” with “WRISTBAND” in FIG. 11.) and applying analogousoperations to those described above in connection with earphones 110.

FIG. 12A illustrates example system 1200 in which various embodiments ofthe disclosure may be implemented. By way of example, system 1200 may beused to determine exertion of a user. System 1200 includes wearabledevice 1202 (e.g. wristband 105, earphones 110), communication medium1204, server 1206, and computing device 1208. Embodiments of system 1200are capable of capturing and tracking robust information related to auser's activity, including information about the user's activity type,duration, intensity, and so on. Moreover, embodiments of system 1200 arealso capable of capturing and tracking robust information related to auser's biometrics. This wealth of information, which may be gathered byvarious sensors as described herein, may be used to provideuser-specific exertion measures and/or exercise intensity measures thatare based on biometric data and/or activity data. Being user-specificand time referenced, the exertion provided by system 1200 may bepersonalized, accurate, and continually updated. Further, in someembodiments, a model may be created based on the user's exerciseintensity (which is further based on the biometric data collected), suchthat the exertion provided by the systems, methods, and devices of thepresent disclosure represent an accumulated measure of exerciseintensities captured during a critical time frame (e.g. a time framewithin which a user's prior exercise intensity effects their currentlevel of exertion) of use. A precise and personalized exertion measureof this nature may allow the user to make informed decisions andassessments regarding the user's exercise regimen and/or lifestyle. Forexample, providing an athlete with a precise and personalized exertionmeasure, as disclosed herein, enable athletes to more intelligentlymodify, track, or gauge the effectiveness of their training regimen,project the impact of a particular activity on their physical conditionat a given moment after a previously performed activity, or to makeother such exertion based assessments.

An accurate and personalized response profile of the above-describednature may allow the user to make informed decisions regarding theuser's training load and/or lifestyle, thus achieving maximumperformance and balance. For example, the response profile may generallyindicate how a user is likely to respond to a given training load orother activity or set of conditions. This indication, in someembodiments, represents the user's performance capacity (e.g., theuser's capacity to undertake a given training load, perform a givenactivity, etc.). Such an indication may be provided to a user in one ormore of an audio, visual, numerical, descriptive, or graphicalrepresentation (e.g., via display 1030 of computing device 120, etc.).For instance, if the indication is provided on a scale from 0 to 100,and the response profile indicates a 75 on this scale, this indicationmay be provided to a user in a bar graph, a scale, a numeral, a digitalgauge, a textual description, or the like (e.g., a bar graph depicted asbeing filled ¾ of the way). In some such embodiments, a 0 on theresponse profile scale may represent little to no capacity to performthe activity (e.g., the user's biometrics reflect that the user has beenworking or active for 24 hours straight with no sleep, and the user thusneeds rest immediately), and a 100 on the response profile scale mayrepresent full capacity (e.g., the user's biometrics reflect that theuser is well-rested and otherwise ready for activity). Of course, anyscale may be implemented without departing from the scope of the presentdisclosure, as indicated previously. Thus, the response profile createdand provided by the systems, methods, and devices of the presentdisclosure may enable a user to intelligently assess the user's capacityfor activity, whether to be undertaken immediately or sometime in thefuture.

Referring again to FIG. 12A, wearable device 1202 may include in someembodiments, wristband 105 or earphones 110. Communication medium 1204may be used to connect or communicatively couple wearable device 1202,server 1206, and/or computing device 1208 to one another or to anetwork, and communication medium 1204 may be implemented in a varietyof forms. For example, communication medium 1204 may include an Internetconnection, such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network(WAN), a fiber optic network, internet over power lines, a hard-wiredconnection (e.g., a bus), and the like, or any other kind of networkconnection. Communication medium 1204 may be implemented using anycombination of routers, cables, modems, switches, fiber optics, wires,radio (e.g., microwave/RF links), and the like. Further, communicationmedium 1204 may be implemented using various wireless standards, such asBluetooth®, Wi-Fi, 3GPP standards (e.g., 2G GSM/GPRS/EDGE, 3G UMTS, or4G LTE), etc. Upon reading the present disclosure, one of skill in theart will recognize other ways to implement communication medium 1204 forcommunications purposes.

Server 1206 generally directs communications made over communicationmedium 1204. Server 1206 may include, for example, an Internet server, arouter, a desktop or laptop computer, a smartphone, a tablet, aprocessor, a module, or the like, and may be implemented in variousforms, include, for example, an integrated circuit, a printed circuitboard, or in a discrete housing/package. In one embodiment, server 1206directs communications between communication medium 1204 and computingdevice 1208. For example, server 1206 may update information stored oncomputing device 1208, or server 1206 may send/receive informationto/from computing device 1208 in real time. Server 1206 may also be usedto implement cloud computing capabilities for wearable device 1202and/or computing device 1208. Indeed, any one or more of the dataprocessing or preprocessing operations discussed herein may be performedat server 1206.

It should be noted that computing device 1208 may take a variety offorms, such as a desktop or laptop computer, a smartphone, a tablet, asmartwatch or other wearable electronic device, a processor, a module,earphones, or the like. By way of illustration, computing device 1208may include a processor or module embedded in a wearable sensor, abracelet, a smart-watch, a piece of clothing, an accessory, and so on.Computing device 1208 may be, for example, substantially similar todevices embedded in electronic capsule 200, which may be embedded inand/or removable from wristband 105, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 through 7and described herein. Computing device 1208 may communicate with otherdevices over communication medium 1204 with or without the use of server1206. In one embodiment, wearable device 1202 includes computing device1208. Further, computing device 1208 may in some cases be computingdevice 120 or be substantially similar thereto, and in this regard, thedescription of computing device 120 herein may apply equally tocomputing device 1208, and vice versa. In various embodiments, wearabledevice 1202 or computing device 1208 may be used to perform variousprocesses described herein and/or may be used to execute variousoperations described herein with regard to one or more disclosed systemsand methods. Upon studying the present disclosure, one of skill in theart will appreciate that system 1200 may in some embodiments includemultiple wearable devices 1202, communication media 1204, servers 1206,and/or computing devices 1208.

FIG. 12B illustrates one embodiment of system 1200, and specifically,provides further detail of some example implementations of wearabledevice 1202 and computing device 1208, in accordance with the presentdisclosure. In the embodiments of FIG. 12B, wearable device 1202 mayinclude biosensor 1210 and/or motion sensor 1212. In one specificexample, wearable device 1202 further includes processor 1214. Processor1214 may be coupled to biosensor 1210 and/or motion sensor 1212, and maybe configured to process electrical signals generated by biosensor 1210and/or motion sensor 1212. Such signals may be indicative of biometricsand/or activity, as will is described in further detail herein.Biosensor 1210 may be implemented as any of the various sensorsdescribed herein for measuring biometrics of a user—e.g., with respectto FIGS. 1 through 11. In this connection, biosensor 1210 may includeone or more sensors, e.g., finger biosensor 320, wrist biosensor 310,and optical heartrate sensor 830. Likewise, motion sensor 1212 may beimplemented as any of the various motion sensors described herein fordetecting motion (e.g., by way of various inertial units), as described,e.g., with reference to FIGS. 1 through 11.

Furthermore, wearable device 1202 may include circuits 1220 that receiveand process the electrical signals from biosensor 1210 and/or motionsensor 1212. For example, circuits 1220 may include an analog-to-digitalconverter, an encoder, modem circuitry, and the like, that receiveelectrical signals from biosensor 1210 and/or motion sensor 1212 andprocess the electrical signals into a format that may be acceptable toprocessor 1214 or that may be transmitted over communication medium 1204by transmitter 1218. Although not depicted, in some embodimentstransmitter 1218 may be a transceiver that can both send and receivesuch signals over communication medium 1204. Storage 1216 may also beincluded in embodiments of wearable device 1202, and may be used tostore activity data and/or biometric data generated from the electricalsignals output by biosensor 1210 and/or motion sensor 1212. This storeddata may then be processed by processor 1214 and used locally towearable device 1202, or be transmitted by transmitter 1218.Additionally, storage 1216 and 1226 may include non-transitorycomputer-readable media having instructions stored thereon that, whenexecuted, cause processor 1214 and/or 1224 to perform various functions,including, by way of example, any of the operations described withreference to methods 1300 (and FIGS. 13A-13F) and elsewhere herein, andto make various calculations, or control or communicate with any of theother various other hardware components described herein. It shouldfurther be noted that storage 1216 may also be used to store/archivesuch calculations/computations, e.g., exercise intensity measures andexertion measures, determined and provided in accordance with variousembodiments of the disclosed technology.

As further depicted in FIG. 12B, system 1200 for determining performancecapacity also includes receiver 1228. Receiver 1228 may be part ofand/or embedded within computing device 1208 (e.g., may be implement atleast in part as an integrated circuit). Receiver 1228 may be a wirelessreceiver configured to wirelessly receive biometric data and/or activitydata. For example, receiver 1228 may receive the biometric and activitydata over communications medium 1204 from transmitter 1218. Thebiometric data may be indicative of biometrics measured by biosensor1210 in wearable device 1202, and the activity data may be indicative ofactivity data monitored by motion sensor 1212. Although not depicted inFIG. 12, in some embodiments receiver 1228 may be a transceiver that canboth send and receive such data over communication medium 1204.

FIGS. 13A-13F illustrate flow charts depicting various operations of anexemplary computer-implemented method 1300 and accompanying embodimentsfor determining exertion in accordance with the present disclosure. Theoperations and sub-operations of method 1300 may be carried out, in somecases, by one or more of the components/elements/devices/modules ofcommunication environment 100, earphones 110, wristband 105, computingdevice 120, tracking application 1015, and/or system 1200—describedabove with reference to FIGS. 1 through 12B—as well assub-components/elements/devices/modules depicted therein or describedwith respect thereto. In such instances, the description of method 1300may refer to the corresponding component/element, but in any case, oneof skill in the art will recognize when the correspondingcomponent/element may be used, whether or not there is explicitreference thereto. Further, it will be appreciated that such referencesdo not necessarily limit method 1300 to the particular component/elementreferred to. Thus, it will be appreciated by one of skill in the artthat aspects and features described above in connection with (sub-)components/elements/devices/modules, including variations thereof, maybe applied to the various operations described in connection with method1300. It will further be appreciated by one of skill in the art that useof the terms operation and sub-operation may in some instances be usedinterchangeably. Generally, method 1300 facilitates determining a user'sexertion—including an Exertion Value, and/or an Exertion Load and/or anExertion Index—during or throughout an activity, exercise session, orpredetermined time period, and based on one or more of the user'smeasured biometrics, e.g., heart rate.

Referring now to FIG. 13A, at operation 1310, method 1300 entailsmeasuring biometrics using a biosensor (e.g. biosensor 1210). Thebiosensor may be embedded in a wearable device 1202 (e.g. earphones 110,wristband 105, etc.). Measuring biometrics may include measuring auser's heart rate and/or estimating the user's HRV, for example.Biometrics may also include the user's temperature, blood pressure, andother characteristics of the user. Biometrics may be measuredcontinuously or periodically. For example, in some cases, it may bedesirable to determine the user's heart rate once every second, onceevery five seconds. In other cases it may be desirable to continuouslymonitor the user's heart rate. At operation 1320, method 1300 mayinclude generating biometric data from the biometrics. This may involvecircuits 1220 converting electrical signals from biosensor 1210 to aformat that processor 1214 may process, store in storage 1216, and/ortransmit by transmitter 1218. For example, biometric data may begenerated from biometrics through analog-to-digital conversion,filtering of the biometrics, and/or encoding of the biometrics or dataindicative thereof. Additionally, operation 1320 may also be performedby processor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or 1226 may includea non-transitory computer readable medium operatively coupled toprocessor 1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that, whenexecuted, cause processor 1214 or 1224 to generate biometric data fromthe biometrics monitored by biosensor 1210, including using circuits1220.

At operation 1330, method 1300 determines an exertion measure based onthe biometrics and/or biometric data from operations 1310 and/or 1320.As indicated earlier, embodiments of the present disclosure are directedtoward systems, methods and devices for determining and providing a userwith their exertion (e.g. exertion level/value, exertion load, exertionindex) as a measure of accumulated exercise intensity values (i.e.measures) taken over the course of an exercise session, a portion of anexercise session, or other specified activity or timeframe. As explainedin more detail in FIGS. 13B-13C, exercise intensity values are based onthe biometrics and/or biometric data from operations 1310 and/or 1320.Operation 1330 of method 1300 may then determine and provide an exertionmeasure (e.g. exertion value, exertion load, exertion index, etc.) tothe user. This will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS.13B-13E, which illustrate, by way of example and not by way oflimitation, how operation 1330 of method 1300 may be implemented toprovide exertion in accordance with some embodiments of the technologydisclosed herein.

FIG. 13B provides an operation flow diagram of some embodiments ofmethod 1300 and in particular of operation 1330. At operation 1350,method 1300 periodically measures or detects the user's heart rateusing, e.g. biosensor 1210. For each heart rate measurement detected,operation 1360 determines an exercise intensity value—based on anexercise intensity model—that corresponds to the heart rate measured forthat particular user. At operation 1370, method 1300 may optionallymaintain or store one or more of the heart rate measurements detected atoperation 1350 and/or one or more of the exercise intensity valuesdetermined at operation 1360. At operation 1380, method 1300 computes anexertion value based on one or more of the exercise intensity valuesdetermined at operation 1360. The computations at operation 1380 arebased on exercise intensity values taken in the aggregate over aparticular time frame, and may be weighted according to their proximityin time to the present. For instance, in a user's exercise intensity(and corresponding exercise intensity value) determined from fiveminutes ago may be weighted less than the exercise intensity value fromone minute ago in assessing and computing exertion (because it has lessof an impact on the user's present condition), and the resultingexertion measures computed at operations 1380, 1390 and 1395 may reflectthis weighting. At operation 1390, method 1300 may use the exertionvalue(s) computed at operation 1380 to compute/determine an exertionindex. At operation 1395, method 1300 may use the exertion value(s)computed at operation 1380 to compute/determine an exertion load. Someoperations of method 1300 will be further detailed in connection withsome example embodiments discussed below.

In particular, FIG. 13C provides an operation flow diagram includingdetails of an exemplary implementation of operation 1360, FIG. 13Dprovides an operation flow diagram including details of an exemplaryimplementation of operation 1380, FIG. 13E provides an operation flowdiagram including details of an exemplary implementation of operation1390, and FIG. 13F provides an operation flow diagram including detailsof an exemplary implementation of operation 1395. These exemplaryimplementations will refer generally to method 1300 of FIG. 13B, andwill be discussed together below. It should be noted, however, that someinformation (e.g. heart rate profile, exercise intensity model, criticalperiod, etc.) and/or sub operations may be predetermined andpreprogrammed in one or more of storage 1226 or 1216 before the systems,methods, and devices of the present disclosure are ever put to use by auser. However, regardless of whether one or more of theinformation/operations disclosed are identified and set prior to orduring operation, any and all such variants are intended to fall withinthe scope of the present disclosure, as one of ordinary skill in the artwill appreciate upon studying this disclosure.

Referring now to FIG. 13C, at operation 1362 a heart rate profile isidentified for a particular user. The heart rate profile may include orbe based, in part, upon a range or selection of one or more heart ratevalues detected by biosensor 1210; or, it may include or be based, inpart, upon input from a user to wearable device 1202 or computing device1208 (e.g. via a GUI displayed on computing device 1208). In otherembodiments, the heart rate profile may be selected from one or morepreset profiles that are based on information (e.g. human averages basedon empirical data) preloaded into storage 1226 or 1216 to predict orapproximate a profile for a user based on a user's inputted height,weight, activity levels, etc. In other embodiments, the heart rateprofile may be created using a combination of information detected bybiosensor 1210 and information provided by the user via computing device1208. In still further embodiments, the heart rate profile may initiallybe provided by the user via computing device 1208, but then graduallymodified as biosensor 1210 of wearable device 1202 learns more about theuser's heart rate patterns from the detected biometric information. Instill further embodiments, the heart rate profile may be preset to astandard profile based on a statistical analysis (e.g. average) of otherhumans. At operation 1364, an exercise intensity model is created basedon the heart rate profile identified at operation 1362. Again, asindicated earlier, the exercise intensity model may similarly bepredetermined and/or predefined and/or preselected in some embodimentsof the present disclosure; or, it may be created and updatedperiodically using the most up-to-date biometric data detected bybiosensor 1210 of wearable device 1202. In either case, taken togetherwith FIGS. 13A-B, the exercise intensity model created at operation 1364may be implemented at operation 1360 to determine exercise intensityvalues corresponding to heart rate measurements detected at operation1350, which can then be used to determine exertion (e.g. exertion loadand/or exertion index) at operation 1330 of method 1300.

Before moving on to a discussion of operation 1370 and 1380, exampleembodiments are now provided to illustrate various implementations ofoperation 1360, and related operations, in accordance with thetechnology disclosed herein.

For example, in some embodiments the heart rate profile identified for aparticular user at operation 1362 is simply the user's maximum heartrate (or maximum heart rate achieved to date). This may be entered bythe user via computing device 1208, detected by biosensor 1210 and/ormotion sensor 1212, or the like. In such embodiments, the exerciseintensity model may be created by generating data points that associatemultiples or percentages (or other functions) of the user's maximumheart rate with values on a standardized scale representing exerciseintensity (e.g. 1-10). Using the data points, an algebraic expressionmay be derived that represents a best fit for those data points (e.g. aregression line). The algebraic expression may be the exercise intensitymodel, and may be used at operation 1360 to map heart rate measures toexercise intensity values on the scale desired. For example, a user'sheart rate profile may be given simply by their maximum heart rate (MHR)of 200 beats per minute (BPM). Data points may be generated based on oneor more percentage(s) of the heart rate profile (e.g. a percentage ofthe maximum heart rate). For instance, in embodiments that employ anexercise intensity scale from 0-10, the data points may be generated bysetting, for example, 50% of the MHR equal to 0, 75% of MHR=5, and 100%of MHR=10. In this example, the exercise intensity model may be given bya linear regression formula of the familiar form, y=m·x+b, and may beused to approximate/extrapolate exercise intensity values for any heartrate detected. In some embodiments, in this example, the exerciseintensity model may be given by:

y(x)=0.1x−10  (1)

where y is the exercise intensity value at heart rate measure ofinterest, x. In such an embodiment, the exercise intensity valuesdetermined at operation 1360 and maintained or stored at operation 1370may be provided by the expression defining the exercise intensity model.For instance, in the example provided above, if a user's heart rate wasdetected once each second, and for a five second timeframe measured 120,122, 124, 124 and 125, the exercise intensity values computed by theexercise intensity model and/or maintained at operation 1370 may begiven as shown below in Table 1.0.

TABLE 1.0 Heart rate at Exercise Intensity Time (t) time (t) Value (y) 1second ago 125 BPM 2.5 (e.g. y = 0.1 · 125 BPM − 10 = 2.5) 2 seconds ago124 BPM 2.4 3 seconds ago 124 BPM 2.4 4 seconds ago 122 BPM 2.2 5seconds ago 123 BPM 2.3

In other embodiments, the exercise intensity model may be more complex,and may further account for a weighting of heart rate measures inaccordance with empirical data and scientific information. For example,in some embodiments the exercise intensity model may be exponential innature, and accord a greater difference in the exercise intensityvalue—and ultimately in the exertion determination—to an increase inheart rate on the higher end than for a similar increase in heart rateat the lower end. Indeed, as reflected in such examples, a usertypically must exert more effort to increase their heart rate from 180BPM to 185 BPM than is needed to increase their heart rate from 100 BPMto 105 BPM, even though the difference in both scenarios is the same, 5BPM. Embodiments of the technology disclosed herein may account forthese differences by employing, at operation 1360, an exercise intensitymodel that is weighted to account for the same. Such an approach may beemployed to provide a more precise and personalized measure of exerciseintensity—and ultimately exertion—and those of ordinary skill in the artwill appreciate that various forms of empirical and scientific dataknown in the art may be implemented in accordance with the presentdisclosure without departing from the technology disclosed herein.

In an example of the above, in some such embodiments a more complexexercise intensity profile may be created using data points that reflecta weighted and/or nonlinear relationship between heart rate and exerciseintensity—whether predetermined for a category of users (e.g. astatistical average), or empirically determined for a particular user—asnoted above. The model may be more complex as noted above even thoughthe user input may be simplistic. Indeed, even the more complex exerciseintensity model may be based on one or more of (semi-)predetermined/preloaded/standardized information, and/or a single inputfrom the user (e.g. the user's max heart rate serving as the heart rateprofile). For example, a data point determination structure may bepreloaded onto storage 1216 or 1226, or implemented in logic circuits ofprocessor 1214 or 1224, in accordance with the following Table 2.0.

TABLE 2.0 Exercise Intensity Value % of Maximum Heart (sometime referredto herein as Rate (% MHR) a weighting value) 0.5 (e.g. 50% of MHR) 1 0.61.25 0.65 1.75 0.7 2.75 0.75 4 0.8 5.75 0.85 7.75 0.9 10As shown in Table 2.0, the data points may include predeterminedpercentages of maximum heart rate corresponding to the appropriateexercise intensity values (scaled to reflect a desired weightingrelationship). An algebraic expression may be derived based strictly onthe percentages (instead of HR information directly), which may then beused to define the exercise intensity model. To use such a model, eachheart rate detected at 1350 may simply be converted into a percentage ofa user's maximum heart rate (previously inputted), which may then beused in connection with the exercise intensity expression/model, atoperation 1360, to map the corresponding heart rate measures to exerciseintensity values in a weighted manner, e.g., in accordance with theweighting reflected in the data points of Table 2.0. In sum, theexercise intensity model expression may approximate a weightedrelationship between exercise intensity values and the particular user'sheart rate measures. In some embodiments, an n-th order polynomial orexponential function may be used to approximate a best fit for the datapoints. Using the data in Table 2.0, the following exemplary 4th-orderpolynomial expression, or the like, may provide best fit for the datapoints.

y=(−266.52 . . . )x ⁴+(746.74 . . . )x ³−(704.13 . . . )x ²+(276.21 . .. )(746.74 . . . )x−(37.75 . . . )  (2)

where y is the exercise intensity value and x is the percentage of theuser's max heart rate.

As noted, the examples provided in connection with Table 1.0 and Table2.0 provide data points based on different quantities. In particular,the x in Table 1.0 is given by the actual heart rate measurements (inBPM), where the x in Table 2.0 represent multipliers (decimal valuescorresponding to percentages) of the MRH. However each corresponds to anexercise intensity value in a similar manner. One of ordinary skill inthe art will appreciate that either of these approaches, along withvarious other quantities, multiples, metrics or other variables may beemployed in connection with a user heart rate profile without departingfrom the scope of the technology disclosed herein. Indeed, in theexamples above, either form may be converted into the other by a simplealgebraic operation (e.g. [%]=[HR]/[MRH] or [HR]=[MRH]·[%]). Forexample, the information in Table 2.0 may be converted to reflect heartrate (HR) instead of the percent of max heart rate (% MHR) as shownbelow in Table 2.1.

TABLE 2.1 % MRH Heart Rate (given in BPM) Exercise (as a decimal) basedon MRH of 200 BPM Intensity Value 0.5 100 BPM (e.g. 0.5 · 1 200 = 100)0.6 120 BPM 1.25 0.65 130 BPM 1.75 0.7 140 BPM 2.75 0.75 150 BPM 4 0.8160 BPM 5.75 0.85 170 BPM 7.75 0.9 180 BPM 10 *Based on a user maximumheart rate of 200 BPMIn either case, as well as in other embodiments in accordance withaspects of the presently disclosed technology, the data points andresultant expression derived from the data points reflect a weightedlinear or weighted nonlinear relationship between heart rate andexercise intensity, or the like. This weighting, in accordance withembodiments of the present disclosure, may be observed by lookingbriefly at Tables 2.0 and 2.1, for example. As shown in Table 2.1,increasing one's heart rate 10 BPM from 170 BPM to 180 BPM correspondsto a difference of 2.25 on the exercise intensity scale, whileincreasing one's heart rate 10 BPM from 120 BPM to 130 BPM onlycorresponds to a difference of 0.5 on the exercise intensity scale.Similarly, in Table 2.1, increasing one's heart rate (viewed as apercentage of the MHR) from 85% of MHR to 90% of MHR corresponds to adifference of 2.25 on the exercise intensity scale, while increasingone's heart rate from 60% of the MHR to 65% of the MHR only correspondsto a difference of 0.5 on the exercise intensity scale. This reflectsthe weighting notion described above, and accords a greater differencein the exercise intensity value—and ultimately in the exertiondetermination—to an increase in heart rate on the higher end than for asimilar increase in heart rate at the lower end.

In still further embodiments, the weighting reflected in the exerciseintensity model/expression is at least partially defined by a range. Forexample the exercise intensity model employed in some embodiments mayrecognize the practical reality that most user's will not exceed anaerobic threshold for a sustained period, and thereby set a certainrange of HRs or PMHRs to a particular exercise intensity value. Forinstance, all HRs detected that are greater than or equal to 90% MHRwill be given a value of 10, while all HRs detected that are below 50%MHR will be given a value of zero. Accordingly, the exercise intensityprofile may be given by a series of expressions reflecting the same. Toextend the foregoing example, such expressions may include thefollowing, or the like:

$\begin{matrix}{{y(x)} = \left\{ \begin{matrix}{0,} & {x < 0.5} \\{{{\left( {{- 266.52}\mspace{20mu} \ldots}\mspace{14mu} \right)x^{4}} + {\left( {746.74\mspace{20mu} \ldots}\mspace{14mu} \right)x^{3}} - {\left( {704.13\mspace{14mu} \ldots}\mspace{14mu} \right)x^{2}} + {\left( {276.21\mspace{14mu} \ldots}\mspace{14mu} \right)\left( {746.74\mspace{14mu} \ldots}\mspace{14mu} \right)x} - \; \left( {37.75\mspace{14mu} \ldots}\mspace{14mu} \right)},} & {0.5 \leq x \leq 0.9} \\{10,} & {x > 0.9}\end{matrix} \right.} & (3)\end{matrix}$

One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that variants of theforegoing expressions and/or series of expressions are intended to andwill fall within the scope of the technology disclosed herein. Asfurther depicted in FIG. 13C, at sub-operation 1366 operation 1360determines an exercise intensity value for one or more detected heartrate measures using the exercise intensity model.

Moving now to a discussion of (sub-)operation 1380, FIG. 13D provides anoperation flow diagram of exemplary embodiments of operation 1380 thatmay be implemented in accordance with operation 1330 of method 1300.Operation 1380 aggregates a set or subset of exercise intensity valuesdetermined at operation 1360, and aggregates them in a weighted/decayingmanner based on their proximity in time to the present (i.e. the weightof earlier exercise intensities decaying with passing time) to computean exertion value (also referred to herein as exertion level). As one ofordinary skill in the art will appreciate upon studying this disclosure,a user's exertion level and exercise intensity values are directlyrelated, and a user's current exertion level may be determined byaggregating exercise intensity values over a critical period prior tothe present. The critical period is typically a period of time nearenough to the present within which it may be said that a given exerciseintensity value (measured during that period) has at least some effecton the present exertion measure. For instance, exercise intensity froman activity performed last year will have little to no bearing aperson's present exertion level, but exercise intensity from an activityperformed just one minute ago will likely have a significant effect onthe user's current exertion level. In other words, the effect of asingular exercise intensity measured during an activity performed in thepast will have less and less an influence on the present as timeprogresses. The critical period may be predetermined and/orpreprogrammed into one or more components of wearable device 1202, orcomputing device 1208, or in some embodiments the critical period may beentered by a user via computing device 1202. In still furtherembodiments, the critical period may be provided by and regularlyupdated via server 1206 based on empirical data, archived biometrics forthe particular user, or the like.

At (sub-) operation 1384, the current (i.e. the most recent timemeasured) exercise intensity value is determined based on the currentheart rate measure. In some embodiments, operation 1384 simplyidentifies the most recent exercise intensity value determined at 1360.In other embodiments it makes a separate determination. However, becausea user's exertion during an exercise session or other activity cannotadequately be represented by the instantaneous exercise intensity valuedetected at the current moment during or at the end of an activity, theexertion measures provided by the systems and methods of the presentdisclosure are based on an aggregate measure of both the current andcertain prior exercise intensity values. As discussed earlier, forexample, the effort required for a weight-lifter to bench press theirtwentieth repetition is effected to some degree by the effort alreadyexpended during the first through nineteenth reps already performed.Accordingly, by way of example, the weight lifter's current exertionlevel not precise and/or accurate if it is based solely on the currentexercise intensity value. However, it is more precisely and accuratelyrepresented when it reflects a measure of not only his current exerciseintensity value during the twentieth rep, but also of his prior exerciseintensity values (as an accumulated and weighted over a critical timeperiod leading up to the twentieth rep, e.g. during the first throughnineteenth reps).

Aggregating a user's current exercise intensity value with certain priorexercise intensity values can enable a more complete view of the user'sactual exertion levels. Indeed, a scientific aggregation of these valuesprovide a user with an intelligent way to evaluate their exertion duringan activity, and make better fitness decisions to achieve theirobjectives. By way of example and not by of limitation, at operation1380 some embodiments of the present technology compute the user'sexertion using the following aggregation expressions, and/or variantsthereof:

EV_(t)=EV_(t-1)+(I _(t)−EV_(t-1))*D  (4)

EV₀=0  (5)

I _(t) =y(x _(t))  (6)

x _(t)=HR_(t) *z  (7)

D=1/p  (8)

where t is the amount of time that has elapsed since the exerciseactivity commenced (given in increments based on the interval betweenmeasurements, e.g., seconds); EV_(t) is the Exertion Value as of thepresent moment (or most recent time segment measured), where the initialexertion value is set to zero, EV₀=0; EV_(t-1) is the exertion valuecomputed at the time segment just prior to the most recent time segment,e.g., if 35.4 seconds have passed, EV_(t-1) would be the exertion valuemeasured at the 34 second marker; I_(t) is the exercise intensity valuemeasured at the present moment, (or most recent time segment measured),e.g., if 35.4 seconds have passed, I_(t) would be the exercise intensityvalue measured at the 35 second marker.

As indicated in equation (6), I_(t) may be represented by an expressiony(x) (e.g. a regression line represented by, for example, equations (1),(2) or (3) disclosed herein or variants thereof) that computes anormalized exercise intensity value scaled in a manner comprehensible toa user (e.g. scaled from 0-10, or 0-100, etc.). As further indicated,the normalized exercise intensity value for a given time segment may bebased upon an input, x, that is directly related to user's detectedheart rate during the time segment of interest, HR_(t). As may beobserved, variable z of equation (7) may be used to operate on theHR_(t) value, to provide the x_(t) measurement of interest as may beappropriate. In some embodiments (see discussion in connection withTable 1.0) the heart rate measure itself may be the desired x_(t) forthe expression y(x_(t)) to produce the desired result. In such cases, zmay simply be set to a value of 1. In other embodiments (see discussionin connection with Table 2.0), a percentage of the maximum heart ratemay be required as the x_(t) value for the expression y(x_(t)) toproduce the correct result. In such cases z may be set equal to 1/MHRsuch that x_(t)=HR_(t)/MHR provides a percentage of the maximum heartrate as the input to the exercise intensity model/expression. One ofordinary skill in the art will recognize that variants of the foregoingmay be implemented without departing from the scope of the technologydisclosed herein.

Finally, D in equation (8) may be a constant, a variable or a functionrepresenting the decay component of the expression, which is based onthe exercise intensity critical period, p, discussed above. Asexplained, the critical period may be thought of as the window of timeup to the present during which the user's prior exercise intensitymeasures are expected to have a significant effect on their presentexertion levels. Said differently, the critical period is the timeperiod before which the user's prior exercise intensity measures are notexpected to have a significant effect on the user's present exertionlevels.

For instance, during a particular exercise session such as running, therunner's exercise intensity value from 5 minutes ago may have little tono bearing on their exertion level at the present, but the runner'sexercise intensity value from 30 seconds ago will have an effect. Insuch an embodiment, the critical period may be determined to be 4minutes (i.e. 240 seconds), for example. In other words, it may bedetermined that the current exertion measures for the user are mostsignificantly affected by the user's exercise intensity during the last4 minutes (e.g. 240 seconds). Thus, p=240 seconds, and so in the exampleabove, D=1/240. Accordingly, D may apply an element of decay to theoverall exertion value determination. Further, using the decaycomponent, D, taken together with the foregoing expression, the systems,methods, and devices of the present disclosure may determine and providea precise measure of exertion, EV_(t), to a user based on a weightedaccumulation of certain exercise intensity values and/or exertion valuesup to the present time t. In this manner, as discussed above, theexertion value computed at operation 1380 may attribute a lesser weightto earlier exercise intensity values as they are accumulated with eachsubsequent exertion value determination (which in some embodiments,occurs every second).

In some embodiments of the present technology, as indicated above, x_(t)may be an actual heart rate measure (e.g. in BPM), and in otherembodiments x_(t) may be given as a percentage of a heart rate quantity(e.g. percentage of maximum heart rate, minimum heart rate, restingheart rate, etc.). In still further embodiments x_(t) may be given asany other quantity based on the user's heart rate or heart rate profile.In any case, y(x) returns an exercise intensity value on a normalized orstandardized scale (e.g. 1-10, 0-10, 1-100, 0-50, etc.). Although notrequired to implement the disclosed technology, one of ordinary skill inthe art will recognize from the examples provided above that—since insome embodiments EV₀ is set to zero—the EV_(t) values will reflect thesame or similar scaling/normalization scheme used to compute exerciseintensity values, I_(t), at operation 1360. For example, the heart rateprofile-to-exercise intensity scaling expression used in equation (6),in some embodiments, may ultimately dictate the scaling/normalizationscheme reflected in the Exertion Values computed by equation (1). Inthis connection, it should be noted that y(x) may in some instances be alinear expression, an n-degree polynomial expression, an exponentialexpression, a nonlinear expression, or otherwise.

As one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, the technologydisclosed herein is not limited to the specific foregoing algebraicexpressions and/or the foregoing examples. Instead, the foregoingexpressions and examples are provided to illustrate by way of examplehow embodiments of the present technology may be implemented. Indeed,alternative expressions including various regression formulae may beemployed without departing from the scope of the technology disclosedherein. Indeed, the notation used above and the formulae and/or examplesmay be modified and/or tailored to accommodate specific embodimentsbased on a variety of factors including a particular users capacity,activities, or otherwise. For example, y(x), p(t), z, etc. may be set toany variable or function that best approximates the exercise intensityvalue and/or exertion value for a particular category of user (e.g.children, professional athletes, elderly, etc.), an individual user,etc.

In any case, the exertion value at a given moment may be determined froma series of heart rates by converting or scaling those heart ratemeasurements to normalized and/or standardized exercise intensityvalues, then accumulating those exercise intensity values in a weightedmanner over a select period of time. The exertion values determinedand/or provided by the present disclosure may give user's a moregranular, precise, and in some embodiments a real-time or near-real-timeview of their exertion during/after an activity or exercise session.

What's more, as depicted at operation 1390 and operation 1395 in FIG.13B, in some embodiments the systems, methods, and devices of thepresent technology provide a user with an Exertion Index and/or anExertion Load based on the Exertion Values described above. FIGS. 13Eand 13F provide operation flow diagrams including details of anexemplary implementation of operation 1390 and 1395 respectively.

Exertion Index is a score (e.g. 1-10) that describes the peakaccumulated intensity a user achieved during a particular exercisesession, activity, or time frame of interest. The Exertion Index isgiven by the maximum exertion value achieved during an exercise session,or up to a particular point in an exercise session if the session is notyet complete. As depicted in FIG. 13E, operation 1390 of method 1300 mayin some embodiments, at sub operation 1391 collect and compare eachprior exertion value determined over an identified time frame, exercisesession, or other activity. The time frame is typically longer than thecritical time period discussed herein. At sub operation 1392, operation1390 may compute one or more statistics based on the collection of priorexertion value determinations from operation 1391, including at leastthe maximum exertion value measured over the identified time frame. Atoperation 1393, operation 1390 may generate an Exertion Index based onthe maximum exertion value determined. In some embodiments, the ExertionIndex is the maximum exertion value determined for a particular timeframe, exercise session, or activity.

Exertion Load is a value that describes the overall (i.e. total)load/demand of the session based on both duration and accumulatedexercise intensity. As depicted in FIG. 13F, exemplary operation 1395 ofmethod 1300 may in some embodiments, at sub operation 1396, collect eachprior exertion value determined over an identified time frame, exercisesession, or other activity. At sub operation 1397, operation 1390 maycompute the sum (i.e. total) of the collection of prior exertion valuesfrom operation 1396. At operation 1398, operation 1390 may generate anExertion Load based on the sum computed in 1397. In some embodiments,the Exertion load is the sum computed in 1397. In other embodiments, theExertion Load is given by a multiple or percentage of the sum computedin 1397. For example, the Exertion Load in some embodiments may beexpressed by:

${EL} = {x \cdot {\sum\limits_{0}^{t}\; {EV}_{t}}}$

where EL is the Exertion Load, EV_(t) is the Exertion Value at time t, tis the present time (or other time based on the interval or time framedesired), and x represents a variable or function that may be utilizedto provide the Exertion Load on the scale of interest. For example, insome embodiments x= 1/100 to scale down the Exertion Load determinationby a factor of 100 for better user readability and comprehension. Insome instances, x may be decreased as the total time frame, t, beingassessed increases.

Finally, it should be noted that the systems, methods, and devices ofthe present technology may be used to provide a user with any one ormore of an exercise intensity, exertion value (exertion level), exertionindex, or exertion load in accordance with this disclosure. Any one ormore of these may be displayed (and updated in real-time or near-realtime) on a display, e.g., display 1030, display 1230, to enable a userto intelligently monitor, track, and meet their fitness objectives.

Referring now to FIG. 14A, at operation 1405, method 1400 entailsmeasuring biometrics using a biosensor (e.g., biosensor 1210). Thebiosensor may be embedded in a wearable device (e.g., wearable device1202). Measuring biometrics may include measuring a user's heart rateand calculating or estimating the user's HRV, for example. Biometricsmay also include the user's temperature, blood pressure, and otherphysical characteristics of the user. Biometrics may be measuredcontinuously or periodically. For example, in some cases, it may bedesirable to determine the user's HRV on a daily basis. At operation1410, method 1400 includes generating biometric data from thebiometrics. This may involve circuits 1220 converting electrical signalsfrom biosensor 1210 to a format that processor 1214 may process, storein storage 1216, and/or transmit by transmitter 1218. For example,biometric data may be generated from biometrics throughanalog-to-digital conversion, filtering of the biometrics, and/orencoding of the biometrics or data indicative thereof. Additionally,operation 1420 may also be performed by processor 1214 or 1224. Forexample, storage 1216 or 1226 may include a non-transitory computerreadable medium operatively coupled to processor 1214 or 1224 andstoring instructions thereon that, when executed, cause processor 1214or 1224 to generate biometric data from the biometrics monitored bybiosensor 1210, including using circuits 1220.

Method 1400 also includes, at operation 1415, monitoring activity usinga motion sensor (e.g., motion sensor 1212) embedded in the wearabledevice (e.g., wearable device 1202). Activity may include a user'smovement, such as the type of movement (e.g., running, biking, swimming,etc.) and the intensity and duration thereof, the user's location andaltitude, etc. Wearable device 1202 may include additional sensors, suchas a temperature sensor, altimeter, hygrometer, and the like, to measurethe user's environmental conditions. Alternatively, such conditions maybe determined from external sources (e.g., weather conditions orlocation information available via data connection to the Internet).

At operation 1420, method 1400 includes generating activity data fromthe activity measured by the motion sensor. In a fashion similar tooperation 1410, this may entail circuits 1220 converting electricalsignals from motion sensor 1212 to a format that processor 1214 mayprocess, store in storage 1216, and/or transmit by transmitter 1218.Operation 1420 may also be performed by processor 1214 or 1224. Forexample, storage 1216 or 1226 may include a non-transitory computerreadable medium operatively coupled to processor 1214 or 1224 andstoring instructions thereon that, when executed, cause processor 1214or 1224 to generate activity data from the activity measured by motionsensor 1212, including using circuits 1220.

At operation 1425, method 1400 involves creating a performance responseprofile. The response profile generally indicates how a user is likelyto respond to a given training load or other activity. Often, a user'sresponse to a given training load will depend on many factors,including, for example, how fatigued the user is, or the user's relativeamounts of activity and rest over a recent time period, fitness level,diet, environmental conditions, stress level, amount of sleep, mood, andso on. The user's HRV may act as a robust indicator of the user'scapacity to exercise, need for rest, overall energy, stress levels, andother health/physical conditions. The user's HRV may be determined usingbiosensors, as described herein. The HRV, however, is not alwaysavailable for the current day (e.g., if the user fails to enable ameasurement by not wearing the wearable device, etc.). Anotherpotentially useful indicator of the user's performance capacity is theuse's recent activity levels, which may generally be referred to hereinas fatigue. As mentioned above, the user's movement and hence activitymay be monitored using a motion sensor and in some cases, additionalhardware as described herein.

In light of the usefulness of both fatigue and HRV, and the occurrencethat one or the other, or both, may in some cases not be available, theresponse profile is based on one or more of an HRV score, a fatiguescore, a predicted HRV score, and a predicted fatigue score. As will bedescribed in further detail, the HRV score is based on biometrics(including the user's HRV, in some cases) but is personalized to theuser. Likewise, the fatigue score is based on the user's fatigue (e.g.,past activity levels) but is personalized to the user. The fatigue scoremay be used to generate a fatigue model for the user, and the HRV scorecan be used to create an HRV model for the user. The fatigue model maythen be used in some embodiments to generate a predicted fatigue scoreabsent recent fatigue data, and the predicted fatigue score is based onone or more of the biometric data and the activity data. Likewise, theHRV model may be used to generate a predicted HRV score absent recentHRV measurements, and the predicted HRV score is based on one or more ofthe biometric data and the activity data. This will be described indetail with reference to FIGS. 14B and 14C.

Turning now to FIG. 14B, an operation flow diagram of embodiments ofmethod 1400 and in particular of operation 1425 is provided. Atoperation 1430, creating the response profile (operation 1425) includesdetermining a fatigue value. The fatigue value is determined based onthe combination of a previous fatigue value with a first differencecalculated by a processor (e.g., processor 1214 or 1224). The firstdifference is between the previous activity value and the previousfatigue value. Further, the first difference is scaled by a fatiguedecay. Equation (9), below, illustrates an example of how the fatiguevalue may be determined.

${{fatigue}\; (n)} = {{{fatigue}\left( {n - m} \right)} + \frac{{{activity}\mspace{14mu} {{value}\left( {n - k} \right)}} - {{fatigue}\left( {n - m} \right)}}{{fatigue}\mspace{14mu} {decay}}}$

In equation (9), fatigue (n) represents the fatigue value at a presenttime/day, where n=0, while fatigue (n−m) represents the previous fatiguevalue from m days or units of time ago. For example, if m=1, theprevious fatigue value may represent yesterday's fatigue value.Likewise, activity value (n−k) represents the previous activity value,where k=1 may correspond to yesterday's activity value. The activityvalue may represent a numerical count (e.g. points) based on the user'sactivity, including activity type, duration, intensity, and so on. Ifthe previous fatigue value is not available, the user's average activitylevel may be used in equation (9) in lieu of the previous fatigue value.Fatigue decay is typically represented as a constant (e.g., 7), but maybe selected from any range of numbers. In other instances, fatigue decaymay be particular to the user, for example, by being derived via the HRVmodel that will be described herein. In short, in such instances, thefatigue decay may be based on the user's actual response to/recoveryfrom various types of activity. Operation 1430 may be performed byprocessor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or 1226 may include anon-transitory computer readable medium operatively coupled to processor1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that, when executed, causeprocessor 1214 or 1224 to determine the fatigue value, including bycalculating the first difference, scaling the first difference by thefatigue value, and combining the scaled first difference with theprevious fatigue value.

In one embodiment, a fitness value is determined. The fitness value maybe determined based on the combination of a previous fitness value witha difference calculated by a processor (e.g., processor 1214 or 1224).With respect to fitness value, in example implementations, thedifference is between the previous activity value and the previousfitness value. Further, the difference is scaled by a fitness decay.Equation (10), below, illustrates an example of how the fitness valuemay be determined.

fitness (n)=fitness (n−m)+activity value (n−k)−fitness(n−m)/fitnessdecay  (10)

In equation (10), fitness (n) represents the fitness value at a presenttime/day, where n=0, while fitness (n−m) represents the previous fitnessvalue from m days or units of time ago. For example, if m=1, theprevious fitness value may represent yesterday's fitness value.Likewise, activity value (n−k) represents the previous activity value,where k=1 may correspond to yesterday's activity value. The activityvalue may represent a numerical count (e.g. points) based on the user'sactivity, including activity type, duration, intensity, and so on. Ifthe previous fitness value is not available, the user's average activitylevel may be used in equation (10) in lieu of the previous fitnessvalue. Fitness decay is typically represented as a constant (e.g., 42),but may be selected from any range of numbers. In other instances,fitness decay may be particular to the user, for example, by beingderived from characteristics of how the user recovers over time, e.g.,via the HRV model that will be described herein. In short, in suchinstances, the fitness decay may be based on the user's actual responseto/recovery from various types of activity. Operation 1430 may beperformed by processor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or 1226may include a non-transitory computer readable medium operativelycoupled to processor 1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that,when executed, cause processor 1214 or 1224 to determine the fitnessvalue, including by calculating the difference, scaling the differenceby the fitness value, and combining the scaled difference with theprevious fitness value.

At operation 1435, creating the response profile includes calculating anaverage fatigue value and a variation in the fatigue value. Thiscalculation is based on a set of the fatigue values previous determined.The average fatigue value may be the mean, median, or mode of previouslydetermined fatigue values (e.g., determined in previous time periodsusing operation 1430). In some cases, the average fatigue value includesthe fatigue value determined for the present day. The variation in thefatigue value may in some cases be the standard deviation of thepreviously determined fatigue values determined in previous timeperiods, e.g., fatigue levels determined for past days. In some cases,the variation in the fatigue value includes the fatigue value determinedfor the present day. Operation 1435 may be performed by processor 1214or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or 1226 may include a non-transitorycomputer readable medium operatively coupled to processor 1214 or 1224and storing instructions thereon that, when executed, cause processor1214 or 1224 to calculate the average fatigue value and the fatiguevalue variation.

Continuing the example, operation 1425 of method 1400 may includeoperation 1440, calculating the fatigue score based on a seconddifference. The second difference is between the average fatigue value(e.g., calculated at operation 1435) and the fatigue value (e.g.,determined at operation 1430). The second difference is scaled by thevariation in the fatigue value (e.g., calculated at operation 1435).Equation (11), below, illustrates an example of how the fatigue scoremay be calculated.

${{fatigue}\mspace{14mu} {score}} = {\frac{1}{\sigma}*\left\{ \left( {{\frac{1}{k}*{\sum\limits_{i = 0}^{k}\; {{fatigue}\mspace{14mu} {{value}\left( {n - i} \right)}}}} - {{fatigue}(n)}} \right\} \right.}$

In equation (11), fatigue value (n−i) represents the previous fatiguevalue from i days or units of time ago. Thus, the summation is takenover k number of days or units of time for which previous fatigue valueshave been determined. The summation is then divided by k to obtain theaverage previous fatigue value. The starting value of i, as well as thevalue of k, may be changed to shift the time period over which thefatigue value is averaged. The fatigue value variation is represented inequation (11) by σ. In this manner, the fatigue score is normalized forthe user, and may thus represent statistically how the user's fatiguevalue stacks up against the user's typical or baseline fatigue valuesmeasured over time. In this regard, the fatigue score may be normalizedso as to range an upper bound to a lower bound. The upper and lowerbounds may be set to be two standard deviations from the mean fatiguescore. Additionally, the upper and lower bounds may be cappedrespectively at 100 and 0. Of course, any range of numbers may be used,depending on the circumstance. In other scenarios, the fatigue score maybe scaled by an additional constant (e.g., 25, or a constant rangingfrom 0 to 100 or any number), and may be added to an offset (e.g., 50,or an offset ranging from 0 to 100 or any number). Operation 1440 may beperformed by processor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or 1226may include a non-transitory computer readable medium operativelycoupled to processor 1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that,when executed, cause processor 1214 or 1224 to calculate the variousvalues in equation (11) and thus the fatigue score.

Referring again to FIG. 14B, method 1400, and specifically operation1425 thereof, in some example implementations, includes operation 1445.Operation 1445 involves maintaining, for a previous measuring period, anaggregation of the calculated fatigue scores (e.g., from operation 1440)and an aggregation of the activity data. The aggregation of thecalculated fatigue scores may include fatigue scores calculated for eachof a series of days that occurred during the previous measuring period.Likewise, the activity data may also correspond to activity monitoredduring the series of days occurring during the past measuring period.The past measuring period may be of programmable length, and may bedefined in time units other than days (e.g., months, weeks, hours,etc.). The aggregation of calculated fatigue scores and the activitydata may be maintained in storage 1216 and/or storage 1226, or in cloudstorage (e.g., in server 1206). Operation 1445 may be performed byprocessor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or 1226 may include anon-transitory computer readable medium operatively coupled to processor1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that, when executed, causeprocessor 1214 or 1224 to maintain the aggregation of the calculatedfatigue scores and activity data.

According to various embodiments, at operation 1450, operation 1425includes creating a fatigue model. The fatigue model is derived from acorrelation of the aggregation of the calculated fatigue scores with theaggregation of the activity data. In example implementations, thefatigue model may be represented as a distribution or table of fatiguescores corresponding to ranges of activity values or other inputparameters. The fatigue model may be presented to the user (e.g., viadisplay 1030 of computing device 120). In such cases, the user may beable to tweak the model, adapt the weighting of parameters therein, andso on. Essentially, the fatigue model may be created by mapping thefatigue scores to corresponding activity data to determine therelationship between the user's activity level and the user's fatiguescores. In this manner, provided with an expected level of activity (oractivity value), the fatigue model may be used to generate a predictedfatigue score, based on the correlation of previous fatigue scores toprevious activity levels. This is represented at operation 1455 in FIG.14B. The predicted fatigue score may be used to gauge what a user'sresponse will be to a particular training load, in terms of fatigue. Thefatigue model may be presented to the user (e.g., via display 1030 ofcomputing device 120). In such cases, the user may be able to tweak themodel, adapt the weighting of parameters therein, and so on. Operation1455 may be performed by processor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage1216 or 1226 may include a non-transitory computer readable mediumoperatively coupled to processor 1214 or 1224 and storing instructionsthereon that, when executed, cause processor 1214 or 1224 to create thefatigue model and use the fatigue model to generate a predicted fatiguescore.

FIG. 14C provides an operational flow diagram for embodiments of method1400 and in particular in connection with operation 1425. The operationsshown in FIG. 14C relate to calculating the user's HRV and an HRV scorethat is personalized for the user, and creating an HRV model thatcorrelates various environmental/external conditions, such as the user'ssleep, activity, rest, geographic information, and stress levels, withthe user's HRV. The HRV model may be used to predict the user's HRVscore in instances where the user's HRV information is not available, orin instances in which the user wishes to get a sense for the user'sresponse to a particular training load or set of conditions.

At operation 1465, creating the response profile (operation 1425)includes calculating a current HRV value from the biometric data. Thebiometric data may be related to the user's heart activity, e.g.,electro-cardio signals from the user's heart, and may be used tocalculate HRV, as described above with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.Operation 1465 may be performed by processor 1214 or 1224. For example,storage 1216 or 1226 may include a non-transitory computer readablemedium operatively coupled to processor 1214 or 1224 and storinginstructions thereon that, when executed, cause processor 1214 or 1224to calculate the HRV value from the biometric data.

At operation 1470, creating the response profile includes calculating anaverage HRV value and an HRV variation. This may be done in a fashionsimilar to operation 1435. Here, the calculation is based on an a set ofHRV values previously calculated based on the biometric data. Theaverage HRV value may be the mean, median, or mode of previouslycalculated HRV values (e.g., the current HRV values calculated forprevious time periods using operation 1465). In some cases, the averageHRV value includes the HRV value determined for the present day. Thevariation in the HRV value, or the HRV variation, may in some cases bethe standard deviation of the previously calculated HRV valuesdetermined in previous time periods, e.g., HRV values determined forpast days. In some cases, the HRV variation includes the HRV valuedetermined for the present day. Operation 1470 may be performed byprocessor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or 1226 may include anon-transitory computer readable medium operatively coupled to processor1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that, when executed, causeprocessor 1214 or 1224 to calculate the average HRV value and tocalculate the variation in the HRV value.

As illustrated in FIG. 14C, operation 1425 may also include calculatingan HRV score, at operation 1475. The HRV score is calculated based on adifference between the average HRV value (e.g., calculated at operation1470) and the current HRV value (e.g., calculated at operation 1465).Moreover, the difference is scaled by the HRV variation (e.g.,calculated at operation 1470). Equation (12), below, illustrates anexample of how the HRV score may be calculated.

$\begin{matrix}{{{HRV}\; {score}} = {\frac{1}{\sigma}*\left\{ {\left( {\frac{1}{k}*{\sum\limits_{i = 0}^{k}\; {{{HRV}{value}}\left( {n - i} \right)}}} \right) - {{HRV}(n)}} \right\}}} & (12)\end{matrix}$

In equation (12), HRV value (n−i) represents a previously calculated HRVvalue from i days or units of time ago. Thus, the summation is takenover k number of days or units of time for which previous fatigue valueshave been determined. The summation is then divided by k to obtain theaverage of the previously calculated HRV values. The starting value ofi, as well as the value of k, may be changed to shift the time periodover which the HRV value is averaged. The HRV variation is representedin equation (12) by σ. In this manner, the HRV score is normalized forthe user, and may thus represent statistically how the user's currentHRV value stacks up against the user's typical or baseline HRV valuesmeasured over time. In this regard, the HRV score may be normalized soas to range between an upper bound to a lower bound. The upper and lowerbounds may be set to be two standard deviations from the mean HRV score.Additionally, the upper and lower bounds may be capped respectively at100 and 0. Of course, any range of numbers may be used, depending on thecircumstance. In other scenarios, the HRV score may be scaled by anadditional constants, and may be added to an offset. Operation 1475 maybe performed by processor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or1226 may include a non-transitory computer readable medium operativelycoupled to processor 1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that,when executed, cause processor 1214 or 1224 to calculate the differenceand scale the same by the HRV variation.

According to various embodiments, at operation 1480, operation 1425includes creating an HRV model. The HRV model is based on a correlationof calculated HRV scores, which may be aggregated over time and storedwith the activity data, which likewise may be aggregated and stored.Essentially, the HRV model may be created by mapping the HRV scores tocorresponding activity data to determine the relationship between theuser's activity level and the user's fatigue scores. In some cases, theHRV score may further be mapped to aggregated biometric data other thanHRV (e.g., the user's temperature and so on), or to aggregatedenvironmental data indicative of environmental conditions describedabove. In this manner, provided with an expected level of activity (oractivity value) or expected environmental conditions or biometrics, theHRV model may be used to generate a predicted HRV score. This isrepresented at operation 1485 in FIG. 14C.

The HRV model may be used to gauge what a user's response will be to aparticular training load and/or environmental conditions and/orbiometrics, in terms of HRV. In example implementations, the HRV modelmay be represented as a distribution or table of HRV scorescorresponding to ranges of activity values or other input parameters(e.g., biometrics or environmental conditions). The HRV model may bepresented to the user (e.g., via display 1030 of computing device 120).In such cases, the user may be able to tweak the model, adapt theweighting of parameters therein, and so on. Operations 1480 and 1485 maybe performed by processor 1214 or 1224. For example, storage 1216 or1226 may include a non-transitory computer readable medium operativelycoupled to processor 1214 or 1224 and storing instructions thereon that,when executed, cause processor 1214 or 1224 to create the HRV model anduse the HRV model to generate the predicted HRV score based on theactivity data.

Referring again to FIG. 14C, embodiments of operation 1425 include, atoperation 1490, generating a scaled HRV score from the HRV score, andgenerating a scaled fatigue score from the fatigue score. The HRV scoreand the fatigue score may be scaled by respective scaling factors. Forexample, the scaling factors may be fractions less than 1, thusdecreasing the value of the HRV score or fatigue score, or may begreater than 1 in order to increase the value of the scores. In othercases, the scaling factors may be negative. Referring again to operation1490, the scaled HRV score and the scaled fatigue score may be combined.As shown below in equation (13), the respective scaling factors may beused to determine the mix that the HRV score and the fatigue scorecontribute to the combination. The combination, in one instance, mayrepresent the response profile.

response profile=α*fatigue score+β*HRV score  (13)

In equation (13), α corresponds to the scaling factor for the fatiguescore, and β corresponds to the scaling factor for the HRV score. Insome cases, α may be set to zero, such that only the HRV scorecontributes to the response profile. Typically, β will be set to 1 insuch cases. In other cases, β may be set to zero, such that only thefatigue score contributes to the response profile. Typically, a will beset to 1 in such cases. In one embodiment α and β are both set to 0.5,such that the fatigue score and the HRV score contribute equally to theresponse profile. In another embodiment, β is set to 0.75 and α is setto 0.25, such that the HRV score contributes more to the responseprofile. This weighting may emphasize the user's holistic response toall environmental and other inputs besides, as captured by the user'stailored HRV score, as opposed to emphasizing contribution from theuser's activity, as captured by the fatigue score.

At operation 1495, operation 1425 of method 1400 includes generating ascaled predicted HRV score from the predicted HRV score, and generatinga scaled fatigue score from the fatigue score. The scaled predicted HRVscore may be scaled by a scaling factor, in a fashion similar to thatdescribed above in connection with operation 1490. Referring again tooperation 1495, the scaled predicted HRV score and the scaled fatiguescore may be combined. As shown below in equation (14), the respectivescaling factors may be used to determine the mix that the predicted HRVscore and the fatigue score contribute to the combination. Thecombination, in one instance, may represent the response profile.

response profile=α*fatigue score+γ*predicted HRV score  (14)

In equation (14), α corresponds to the scaling factor for the fatiguescore, and γ corresponds to the scaling factor for the predicted HRVscore. In some cases, α may be set to zero, such that only the predictedHRV score contributes to the response profile. Typically, γ will be setto 1 in such cases. In other cases, γ may be set to zero, such that onlythe fatigue score contributes to the response profile. Typically, α willbe set to 1 in such cases. For example, such cases may occur where it isdesired for the response profile to focus only on the user's activityand to diminish the user's response to other factors such as, by way ofillustration, the user's physical response to activity, which maygenerally be accounted for using HRV. Additionally, γ may be set to zeroif there is simply no HRV information available (e.g., if the user hasnever measured HRV). In one embodiment α and γ are both set to 0.5, suchthat the fatigue score and the predicted HRV score contribute equally tothe response profile. In another embodiments, α and γ may be varied orprogrammed, such that the predicted HRV score or the fatigue scorecontributes more to the response profile. The predicted fatigue scoremay be substituted in equations (13) or (14) and scaled and combinedwith either the HRV score or the predicted HRV score as described abovewith regard to the fatigue score.

An accurate and personalized response profile of the above-describednature may allow the user to make informed decisions regarding theuser's training load and/or lifestyle, thus achieving maximumperformance and balance. Referring again to FIG. 14A, and as indicatedabove, the response profile created at operation 1425 may generallyindicate how a user is likely to respond to a given training load orother activity or set of conditions. This indication, in someembodiments, represents the user's performance capacity (e.g. the user'scapacity to undertake a given training load, perform a given activity,etc.). Such an indication may be provided to a user in one or more of anaudio, visual, numerical, descriptive, or graphical representation (e.g.via display 1230 of computing device 1208, etc.). For instance, if theindication is given on a scale from 0 to 100, and for a given trainingload or other activity the response profile indicates a 75 on thisscale, this indication may be provided to a user in a bar graph, ascale, a numeral, a digital gauge, a textual description, or the like(e.g. a bar graph depicted as being filled ¾ of the way). In some suchembodiments, a 0 on the response profile scale may represent little tono capacity to perform the activity (e.g. the user's biometrics reflectthat they have been working for 24 hours straight with no sleep, andthey need rest immediately), and a 100 on the response profile scale mayrepresent full capacity (e.g. the user's biometrics reflect that theyare well-rested and otherwise ready for activity). Of course, any scalemay be implemented without departing from the scope of the presentdisclosure, as indicated previously. Thus, the response profile createdand provided by the systems, methods, and devices of the presentdisclosure enable a user to intelligently assess their capacity toperform an activity.

Moreover, each of the measurements, operations, computations, etc.described in connection with the exertion measures detailed earlier(with reference to FIGS. 13A-13F) may be performed inconjunction/parallel with the measurements, operations, computations,etc. described in connection with the response profileindications/measures detailed above (with reference to FIGS. 14A-14C).In various embodiments, one or more of the response profilemeasures/indication and the exertion measures/indications are used tofurther provide a user with an exertion recommendation for animpending/anticipated exercise session. The details of some suchembodiments are provided in connection with FIGS. 15A-15B below.

It is noted here that the operations/methods described below inconnection with FIGS. 15A-15B may be informed by and build upon theoperations/methods discussed in connection with FIGS. 13A-14C. It isfurther noted that one or more operations and/or sub-operationsdiscussed in connection with method 1300, 1400 and 1500 may inform, beused in place of, or be use in parallel with one or more of the otheroperations of these methods. For instance, operation 1305 and 1405 mayin some embodiments be the same operation, and may performed using thesame instructions stored on the same non-transitory computer readablemedium operatively coupled to one or more of the same processors 1214 or1224, and the biometric measured therefrom may inform both operation1320 and 1410 of methods 1300 and 1400, which may further inform andprovide the data forming the basis for method 1500 to provide anexertion recommendation. One of ordinary skill in the art willappreciate that the operations and sub-operations of methods 1300, 1400,and 1500 may be deduplicated in many such ways (often to reduceprocessing load, power consumption, etc.) without departing from thespirit and scope of the present disclosure.

It is further noted here that the operations and sub-operations ofmethod 1500 may be carried out, in some cases, by one or more of thecomponents/elements/devices/modules of communication environment 100,earphones 110, wristband 105, computing device 120, tracking application1015, and/or system 1200—described above with reference to FIGS.1-12B—as well as sub-components/elements/devices/modules depictedtherein or described with respect thereto. It will be appreciated by oneof skill in the art that aspects and features described above inconnection with (sub-) components/elements/devices/modules, includingvariations thereof, may be applied to the various operations describedin connection with method 1500. It will further be appreciated by one ofskill in the art, consistent with the foregoing disclosures of methods1300 and 1400, that use of the terms operation and sub-operation withrespect to method 1500 may in some instances be used interchangeably.

FIGS. 15A-15B illustrate flow charts depicting various operations of anexemplary computer-implemented method 1500 and accompanying embodimentsfor determining and providing an exertion recommendation in accordancewith the present disclosure. In particular, method 1500 entailsdetermining and providing an exertion recommendation for an anticipatedexercise session, activity, or time period of interest. Although theexemplary figures and description that follow are provided and describedwith respect to an exertion recommendation for an exercise session inparticular, these are non-limiting examples provided for clarity, and itshould be understood that the technology of the present disclosure alsoextends to exertion recommendation in connection with other activitiesand/or time periods of interest to the user.

The exertion recommendations provided by the systems, methods anddevices of the present disclosure may include one or more of arecommended exertion load, a recommended exertion index, or otherintelligent exertion recommendation reflecting a combination of both.

Referring now to FIG. 15A, at operation 1510, method 1500 entailsidentifying the user's current (or most recent) response profile (e.g.before an exercise session). At operation 1520, method 1500 entailsidentifying what the user would like their response profile to be atsome point in the future (e.g. after the exercise session). At operation1530, method 1500 calculates/determines/provides an exertionrecommendation for a user's upcoming exercise session, that, ifachieved, would allow the user to realize their desired post-exercisesession response profile (e.g. identified at operation 1520). Variousembodiments of method 1500 are further detailed below.

At operation 1510, method 1500 identifies the user's current responseprofile (e.g. before an exercise session). In some embodiments, theidentified current response profile is obtained or informed by one ormore outputs/operations described above in connection with method 1400.For example, in some embodiments of the present technology, thepre-exercise session response profile identified at operation 1510 isthe most recent response profile (or an indication thereof)—as computedprior to commencing an exercise session—created at operation 1425 ofmethod 1400.

At operation 1520, method 1500 identifies a desired post-exercisesession response profile (or an indication thereof). This may occur in avariety of ways, including but not limited to prompting the user toinput such information (e.g. a number on a scale) via a GUI on a display(e.g. display 1030, 1230, etc.); estimating such information based on ahistorical archive of the user's preferred post-exercise responseprofile (or a pattern detected therefrom); estimating such informationbased on other information collected from othermodules/components/applications of a computing device 1208 (e.g.activities scheduled in a user's electronic calendar in computingdevice); or the like. In embodiments that entail making an estimate of auser's desired post-exercise response profile, one of ordinary skill inthe art will appreciate that any one or more of thedata/information/computations/determinations/operation outputs may bestored on one or more of the storage/memory components (e.g., memory840, memory 855, storage 1010, storage 1226, or the like), and furtherused to make such an estimate. One of ordinary skill in the art willfurther recognize that an archive of such data may be maintained in suchstorage/memory components, the archive being a collection of any one ormore of the data/information/computation/determinations provided by anyone or more of the methods/operations/sub-operations disclosed herein.Data from the archive (including patterns detected therefrom) may beused, as indicated above, at operation 1520 to estimate a desiredresponse profile for a user.

For example, operation 1520 may estimate a user's desired post-exercisesession response profile based on the average/median of the user'spreviously inputted desired post-exercise session response profiles(over a week, a month, year, etc.). In another example, operation 1520may identify a desirable post-exercise response profile based on acombination of the foregoing (e.g. archival patterns detected, directinput from a user), as well as information gleaned from other sources(e.g. sensors, applications, etc.) accessible to computing device 1208.For example, the desired post-exercise response profile identified maybe based, in whole or in part, on information obtained from anelectronic clock, thermometer, altimeter, an electronic calendar, etc.accessible to the systems and methods of the present disclosure via oneor more of computing device 120, wearable device 1202, server 1206, orthe like.

For instance, the user's current response profile at 9:00 am mayindicate a numeric representation of 95 on a scale from 0 to 100,indicating, for example, that the user is fairly well-rested andprepared for an intense exercise session (i.e. involving high levels ofexertion) anticipated between 9:15 am and 10:15 am. The user may havepreviously inputted the same desired post-exercise session profile (e.g.55 for example) before the same or similar exercise session for fiveprior days, so operation 1520 may automatically predict and set thedesired post-exercise session response profile at the same level (e.g.at 55) for the instant exercise session on that basis. In someembodiments, such a prediction may be subject to the user's acceptanceand or modification via GUI of display 1030, display 1230, or the like.

In another scenario, to expand the example, the user's calendar mayinform method 1500 at operation 1520 that the user is participating in ascheduled boxing match that evening at 5:00 pm (which may be unusualbased on the user's typical daily pattern). Accordingly, operation 1520may adjust the post-exercise session response profile to a higher level(e.g. 75 instead of 55) to help/suggest to the user to preserve moreenergy for his/her upcoming boxing match. Again, such asuggestion/prediction may be subject to the user's acceptance and ormodification via GUI of display 1030, display 1230, or the like. One ofordinary skill in the art will appreciate that these examples are merelyexemplary for purposes of discussion, and that variants thereof may beused—as indicated above—without departing form the scope of the presenttechnology. While in many embodiments the systems, methods, and devicesof the present disclosure will automatically predict or identify adesirable post-exercise session response profile, in some suchembodiments the desired post-exercise session response profile predictedis provided in a prompt to a user allowing the user to optionally adjustthe prediction to the user's actual desired post-exercise sessionresponse profile. It is also recognized that in typical embodiments, thedesired post-exercise session response profile identified at operation1520 is provided and defined entirely by direct input from a user. Forinstance, the user may enter their desired post-exercise responseprofile (e.g. 65) into a GUI via a touchscreen display of a computingdevice (e.g. computing device 1200).

Once the desired post-exercise session response profile is identified atoperation 1520—whether by automatic prediction, direct input from theuser, or the like—method 1500 computes, at operation 1530, an exertionrecommendation for the anticipated/impending exercise session. Asexplained, the exertion recommendation provides a basis from which auser may intelligently gauge/plan their exercise intensity objectivesduring the exercise session to best achieve the desired post-exercisesession response profile. Details for this determination are furtherdescribed in connection with FIG. 15B below.

As shown in FIG. 15B, at suboperation 1532 method 1500 creates anexertion model by, in some embodiments, associating response profile andexertion measures from prior exercise sessions in one or moreexpressions. As noted above, because response profile information (see,e.g., FIGS. 14A-14C) and exertion information (see, e.g., FIGS. 13A-13F)may be computed/determined in parallel, the systems, methods, anddevices of the present disclosure may identify, store, update, and/orutilize the same to create an intelligent and scientific relationshipbetween them. This relationship may be represented in one or moreexertion models (e.g. algebraic expressions, a data structures,matrices, etc.) that associate a user's exertion during a given exercisesession with the change in the user's response profile before and afterthe given exercise session. It should be noted that operation 1532depicted in FIG. 15B is not intended to required that a new exertionmodel is produced each time an exertion recommendation is provided inthe systems, methods, and devices of the present technology. While thismay occur in some embodiment, it need not. For example, a singleexertion model may be created and utilized for all exercise sessions,the exertion model may be updated/recreated periodically (e.g. weekly),and the like.

In some embodiments, an exertion model may be configured usingpredefined parameters and conditions. For example, a user's responseprofile (i.e. performance capacity) may be indicated on a scale from0-100, where 0 represents an entirely exhausted condition and 100represents an entirely rested and able condition. Additionally, theuser's exertion load during a particular exercise session may bemeasured as the sum (or weighted sum) of all exertion values computed ateach interval (e.g. second) during that exercise session, whereindividual exertion values range from 0-10 for any given moment. Theuser may have used the systems, methods, and devices of the presentdisclosure in seven prior exercise sessions where the following data(shown in Table 3.0) was computed/processed/determined for each.

TABLE 3.0 Pre-ES Post-ES Exercise ES Response Response RP_(post) −Exertion Exertion Session ΔTime Profile Profile RP_(pre) Load Index (ES)(ΔT) (RP_(pre)) (RP_(post)) (ΔRP) (EL) (EI) 1 30 min 95 85 −10 1052 7.52 60 min 95 60 −35 2250 10 3 45 min 80 60 20 1765 9.3 4 35 min 90 77 131268 8.2 5 20 min 50 30 20 640 4.3 6 45 min 63 30 33 1503 9.0 7 60 min75 38 37 2164 9.5

Thus, using the data from previous exercise sessions, such as theexample data in Table 3.0, operation 1532 of method 1500 may create anexertion model intelligently associating this data. In particular, theactual data from previous exercise sessions may be used to extrapolatean estimate and/or derive an expression (i.e. an exertion model) thatprovides an estimate of exertion that is typical when other conditionsare present, e.g. for a particular change in the user's response profilefrom before and after an exercise session. For example, the exertionmodel may be (1) a function of multiple variables (e.g. amulti-dimensional expression that may be represented as a surface inthree dimensional space), (2) a multi-dimensional matrix (e.g. 2D, 3D,4D, etc.), or (3) other data structures relating exertion measures toresponse profiles as indicated above, or the like. For example, anexertion model may be represented by a best fit expression that maps achange in response profile in a given time interval to a particularexertion load experienced during that time interval, given as some formor variant of the equation (15) below.

EL(ΔT,ΔRP)=a(ΔT)+b(ΔRP)  (15)

The exertion model may then be used to determine and provide an exertionrecommendation for an anticipated exercise session that is tailored tothe particular user based on performance during prior exercise sessions.Equation (15) represents an exemplary form exertion model/expressionthat may be used, in some embodiments, to estimate and recommend anexertion load (EL) for the user to achieve during ananticipated/imminent exercise session. As shown in equation (15), anexemplary exertion model may compute an exertion load as a function ofthe length of time (ΔT) the session is intended to last, and the targetchange in performance capacity given by the desired change in responseprofile (ΔRP). The exertion recommendation may be provided such that, ifthe appropriate level of exertion is achieved, the user might attaintheir desired post-exercise session response profile.

It is noted that the expression representing the exertion model may bederived (using methods commonly known in the art) to provide best fitregression line(s), best fit surface/multivariable expression, or otherexpression representing a best fit of the data. Further, it will berecognized that the data used to derive the exertion model may includeone or more of (1) data collected/computed from the particular userduring past exercise sessions (as explained earlier in connection withsystem 1200, method 1300, and method 1400), (2) data preloaded in thesystem (e.g. storage 1226 of computing device 1208) representingaverages or estimates from other users, (3) data inputted directly by auser via a user interface of a computing device, (4) a weightedcombination of (1) and/or (2) and/or (3), or the like.

Of course, it is further noted that equation (15) and the form thereofis not limiting, and merely illustrates one example exertion model thatmay be used in accordance with the technology disclosed herein. Forexample, instead of representing a relationship between exertion loadand response profile changes, the exertion model may represent arelationship between exertion index and response profile changes, or acombination of both. In other embodiments, the exertion model isrepresented by more than one expression defining the relationship. Andindeed, in some embodiments multiple exertion models may be created atoperation 1532 and employed at operation 1534. One of ordinary skill inthe art will appreciate that many expressions/models/formula/datastructures may be derived/used—using any derivation methods known in theart—establishing a relationship between exertion measures (e.g. any andall exertion measures described in connection with FIGS. 13A-13F),response profiles (e.g., any and all response profile computationsdescribed in connection with FIGS. 14A-14C), and other factors (e.g.time intervals, altitude, etc.).

At operation 1534, method 1500 determines an exertion (i.e. exertionload and/or exertion index) for an upcoming exercise session using theexertion model (or an output therefrom) and/or other data; the exertioncorresponds to the exertion load and/or exertion index that, ifachieved, will allow the a to attain the performance capacity changes(e.g. the changes in the user's response profile) they desirepost-exercise session. The user may provide certain information as aninput (either directly, or via one or more of biosensor 1210 or motionsensor 1212), and the exertion model may operate on this information toprovide an output/determination as noted above. For instance, before anexercise session a user may be provided with their current responseprofile (i.e. as an indication of current performance capacity), andthen input their preferred or desired post-exercise session responseprofile. In some embodiments, the user may further input an estimatedamount of time they expect the exercise session to take (thereby addingmore precision to the exertion determined via the exertion model).

For example, the system 1200 may indicate to the user that theirresponse profile (i.e. performance capacity) is 95% and then prompt theuser (via GUI of display 1230) to input their desired post-exercisesession response profile. The user may then consider their schedule forthe day, decide that don't have much else going on that day, forexample, and that they can afford to expend a lot of energy in theirupcoming exercise session. The user may further input that they wanttheir post-exercise response profile to be 50%, and that they'd like toexercise for 60 minutes. In some such embodiments, with this informationas an input, method 1500 at operation 1534 may determine an exertionload and/or exertion index that would correspond to such a change in theuser's response profile.

At operation 1536, method 1500 provides a recommended exertion loadand/or exertion index for an anticipated exercise session based on theexertion load and/or exertion index determined at operation 1534. Insome embodiments, the recommended exertion load may be the same as theexertion load determined at operation 1534. Similarly, in some suchembodiments, the recommended exertion index may be the same as theexertion index determined at operation 1534. In other embodiments, therecommended exertion load is a function of (e.g. multiple, percentage)of the exertion load determined at operation 1534, and/or therecommended exertion index is a function of (e.g. multiple, percentage)the exertion index determined at operation 1534. At operation 1536,method 1500 provides and/or stores the exertion recommendation for theupcoming exercise session to one or more of the system, a user, awearable device, a computing device, and/or a server.

To extend the previous example, computing device 1208 may display to theuser a recommended exertion load of 2700, and/or display recommendedexertion index of 10 for the upcoming exercise session. Based on thisinformation, a user may then make an informed and intelligent assessmentof how they approach and perform the various exercises that comprisetheir exercise session. Indeed, it may even enable the user to moreintelligently decide upon the exercise activity they chooses for thegiven exercise session (e.g. running, swimming, biking, etc.).Accordingly, the systems, methods, and devices of the present disclosurecan enable a user to achieve their exercise goals and lifestyleobjectives with more precision, accuracy, and effectiveness.

It should further be noted that, in some embodiments, once the user hascompleted a given exercise session (or at any time throughout theexercise session), the systems and methods of the present disclosure mayfurther provide an updated/current response profile indication so thatthe user can obtain a further understanding of their performancecapacity going forward. This may enable a user to assess the actualresult of their exercise session, in terms of response profile, andreassess the way they approach the remainder of their day and/or whenthe will retire for the evening, etc.

Additionally, it should further be noted that in embodiments that employpreviously collected user exercise session data in creating an exertionmodel, the systems and methods of the present technology may furtherutilize any new data collected from each additional exercise session tomake an update to (i.e. modify) the existing exertion model to hone thefit of the expression/model to more accurately reflect the user'sindividual fitness profile. In this manner, in various embodiments, theexertion model may learn the user's typical responses to variousexercise sessions (as a function of exercise intensity, exertion load,exertion index, HRV, fatigue, HR, etc.) and evolve/change as the user'sfitness levels and performance capacity evolves/changes (e.g. as a userbecomes more fit, the recommended exertion load may be greater for thesame desired post-exercise session response profile entered by theuser).

FIG. 16 illustrates example computing module 1600, which may in someinstances include a processor/controller resident on a computer system(e.g., computing device 120 or wearable device 1202). Computing module1600 may be used to implement various features and/or functionality ofembodiments of the systems and methods disclosed herein. With regard tothe above-described embodiments of computing module 1600, computingdevice 120, and wearable device 1202, one of skill in the art willappreciate additional variations and details regarding the functionalityof the embodiments, as set forth herein in the context of systems andmethod described with reference to FIGS. 1 through 16. In thisconnection, it will also be appreciated by one of skill in the art thatfeatures and aspects of the various embodiments (e.g., systems)described herein may be implemented with respected to other embodiments(e.g., methods) described herein without departing from the scope andspirit of this disclosure.

As used herein, the term module may describe a given unit offunctionality that may be performed in accordance with one or moreembodiments of the present application. As used herein, a module may beimplemented utilizing any form of hardware, software, or a combinationthereof. For example, one or more processors, controllers, ASICs, PLAs,PALs, CPLDs, FPGAs, logical components, software routines or othermechanisms may be implemented to make up a module. In implementation,the various modules described herein may be implemented as discretemodules or the functions and features described may be shared in part orin total among one or more modules. In other words, as would be apparentto one of ordinary skill in the art after reading this description, thevarious features and functionality described herein may be implementedin any given application and may be implemented in one or more separateor shared modules in various combinations and permutations. Even thoughvarious features or elements of functionality may be individuallydescribed or claimed as separate modules, one of ordinary skill in theart will understand that these features and functionality may be sharedamong one or more common software and hardware elements, and suchdescription shall not require or imply that separate hardware orsoftware components are used to implement such features orfunctionality.

Where components or modules of the application are implemented in wholeor in part using software, in one embodiment, these software elementsmay be implemented to operate with a computing or processing modulecapable of carrying out the functionality described with respectthereto. One such example computing module is shown in FIG. 16. Variousembodiments are described in terms of example computing module 1600.After reading this description, it will become apparent to a personskilled in the relevant art how to implement the application using othercomputing modules or architectures.

Referring now to FIG. 16, computing module 1600 may represent, forexample, computing or processing capabilities found within mainframes,supercomputers, workstations or servers; desktop, laptop, notebook, ortablet computers; hand-held computing devices (tablets, PDA's,smartphones, cell phones, palmtops, etc.); or the like, depending on theapplication and/or environment for which computing module 1600 isspecifically purposed.

Computing module 1600 may include, for example, one or more processors,controllers, control modules, or other processing devices, such as aprocessor 1604. Processor 1604 may be implemented using aspecial-purpose processing engine such as, for example, amicroprocessor, controller, or other control logic. In the illustratedexample, processor 1604 is connected to bus 1602, although anycommunication medium may be used to facilitate interaction with othercomponents of computing module 1600 or to communicate externally.

Computing module 1600 may also include one or more memory modules,simply referred to herein as main memory 1608. For example, randomaccess memory (RAM) or other dynamic memory may be used for storinginformation and instructions to be executed by processor 1604. Mainmemory 1608 may also be used for storing temporary variables or otherintermediate information during execution of instructions to be executedby processor 1604. Computing module 1600 may likewise include a readonly memory (ROM) or other static storage device coupled to bus 1602 forstoring static information and instructions for processor 1604.

Computing module 1600 may also include one or more various forms ofinformation storage devices 1610, which may include, for example, mediadrive 1612 and storage unit interface 1620. Media drive 1612 may includea drive or other mechanism to support fixed or removable storage media1614. For example, a hard disk drive, a floppy disk drive, a magnetictape drive, an optical disk drive, a CD or DVD drive (R or RW), or otherremovable or fixed media drive may be provided. Accordingly, removablestorage media 1614 may include, for example, a hard disk, a floppy disk,magnetic tape, cartridge, optical disk, a CD or DVD, or other fixed orremovable medium that is read by, written to or accessed by media drive1612. As these examples illustrate, removable storage media 1614 mayinclude a computer usable storage medium having stored therein computersoftware or data.

In alternative embodiments, information storage devices 1610 may includeother similar instrumentalities for allowing computer programs or otherinstructions or data to be loaded into computing module 1600. Suchinstrumentalities may include, for example, fixed or removable storageunit 1622 and storage unit interface 1620. Examples of such removablestorage units 1622 and storage unit interfaces 1620 may include aprogram cartridge and cartridge interface, a removable memory (forexample, a flash memory or other removable memory module) and memoryslot, a PCMCIA slot and card, and other fixed or removable storage units1622 and storage unit interfaces 1620 that allow software and data to betransferred from removable storage unit 1622 to computing module 1600.

Computing module 1600 may also include a communications interface 1624.Communications interface 1624 may be used to allow software and data tobe transferred between computing module 1600 and external devices.Examples of communications interface 1624 include a modem or softmodem,a network interface (such as an Ethernet, network interface card,WiMedia, IEEE 802.XX or other interface), a communications port (such asfor example, a USB port, IR port, RS232 port Bluetooth® interface, orother port), or other communications interface. Software and datatransferred via communications interface 1624 may typically be carriedon signals, which may be electronic, electromagnetic (which includesoptical) or other signals capable of being exchanged by a givencommunications interface 1624. These signals may be provided tocommunications interface 1624 via channel 1628. Channel 1628 may carrysignals and may be implemented using a wired or wireless communicationmedium. Some non-limiting examples of channel 1628 include a phone line,a cellular link, an RF link, an optical link, a network interface, alocal or wide area network, and other wired or wireless communicationschannels.

In this document, the terms “computer program medium” and “computerusable medium” are used to generally refer to transitory ornon-transitory media such as, for example, main memory 1608, storageunit interface 1620, removable storage media 1614, and channel 1628.These and other various forms of computer program media or computerusable media may be involved in carrying one or more sequences of one ormore instructions to a processing device for execution. Suchinstructions embodied on the medium, are generally referred to as“computer program code” or a “computer program product” (which may begrouped in the form of computer programs or other groupings). Whenexecuted, such instructions may enable the computing module 1600 or aprocessor to perform features or functions of the present application asdiscussed herein.

Various embodiments have been described with reference to specificexample features thereof. It will, however, be evident that variousmodifications and changes may be made thereto without departing from thebroader spirit and scope of the various embodiments as set forth in theappended claims. The specification and figures are, accordingly, to beregarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

Although described above in terms of various example embodiments andimplementations, it should be understood that the various features,aspects and functionality described in one or more of the individualembodiments are not limited in their applicability to the particularembodiment with which they are described, but instead may be applied,alone or in various combinations, to one or more of the otherembodiments of the present application, whether or not such embodimentsare described and whether or not such features are presented as being apart of a described embodiment. Thus, the breadth and scope of thepresent application should not be limited by any of the above-describedexample embodiments.

Terms and phrases used in the present application, and variationsthereof, unless otherwise expressly stated, should be construed as openended as opposed to limiting. As examples of the foregoing: the term“including” should be read as meaning “including, without limitation” orthe like; the term “example” is used to provide illustrative instancesof the item in discussion, not an exhaustive or limiting list thereof;the terms “a” or “an” should be read as meaning “at least one,” “one ormore” or the like; and adjectives such as “conventional,” “traditional,”“normal,” “standard,” “known” and terms of similar meaning should not beconstrued as limiting the item described to a given time period or to anitem available as of a given time, but instead should be read toencompass conventional, traditional, normal, or standard technologiesthat may be available or known now or at any time in the future.Likewise, where this document refers to technologies that would beapparent or known to one of ordinary skill in the art, such technologiesencompass those apparent or known to the skilled artisan now or at anytime in the future.

The presence of broadening words and phrases such as “one or more,” “atleast,” “but not limited to” or other like phrases in some instancesshall not be read to mean that the narrower case is intended or requiredin instances where such broadening phrases may be absent. The use of theterm “module” does not imply that the components or functionalitydescribed or claimed as part of the module are all configured in acommon package. Indeed, any or all of the various components of amodule, whether control logic or other components, may be combined in asingle package or separately maintained and may further be distributedin multiple groupings or packages or across multiple locations.

Additionally, the various embodiments set forth herein are described interms of example block diagrams, flow charts, and other illustrations.As will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art afterreading this document, the illustrated embodiments and their variousalternatives may be implemented without confinement to the illustratedexamples. For example, block diagrams and their accompanying descriptionshould not be construed as mandating a particular architecture orconfiguration.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for providing an exertionrecommendation, the system comprising: a wearable device, comprising: abiosensor that monitors biometrics; a motion sensor that monitorsactivity; a processor operatively coupled to the biosensor and themotion sensor, the processor configured to process electronic signalsgenerated by the biosensor and the motion sensor and generate one ormore of biometric data and activity data therefrom; and a non-transitorycomputer-readable medium operatively coupled to the processor andstoring instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to:generate an exertion recommendation for an exercise session, theexertion recommendation comprising: one or more of an exertion loadrecommendation and an exertion index recommendation; wherein theexertion recommendation is generated from an exertion model based on oneor more of the biometrics monitored by the biosensor and the activitymonitored by the motion sensor.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein thewearable device comprises one or more of an earphone and a wristband. 3.The system of claim 1, wherein the biosensor comprises one or more of afinger biosensor, a wrist biosensor, and an optical heartrate sensor. 4.The system of claim 1, wherein the biometric data includes one or moreof a heart rate and a heart rate variability.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein the exertion recommendation is further based on the amount oftime the exercise session is anticipated to take.
 6. The system of claim1, wherein the non-transitory computer-readable medium operativelycoupled to the processor further stores instructions that, whenexecuted, cause the processor to: generate a response profile based onone or more of the biometrics monitored by the biosensor and theactivity monitored by the motion sensor; update the exertion model basedon one or more generated response profiles.
 7. The system of claim 1,further comprising: a first wireless transceiver embedded in thewearable device; a second wireless transceiver embedded in a computingdevice operatively coupled to the wearable device; wherein, the firstand second wireless transceivers are configured to receive and send oneor more of the biometric data and the activity data;
 8. A system forproviding an exertion recommendation, the system comprising: anelectronic clock configured to monitor time; a wearable device,comprising: a biosensor that monitors biometrics; a motion sensor thatmonitors activity; a processor operatively coupled to the biosensor andthe motion sensor, the processor configured to process electronicsignals generated by the biosensor and the motion sensor and generateone or more of biometric data and activity data therefrom; and anon-transitory computer-readable medium operatively coupled to theprocessor and storing instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor to: generate a response profile based on one or more of thebiometrics monitored by the biosensor and the activity monitored by themotion sensor; generate one or more of an exertion load and an exertionindex based on one or more of the biometrics monitored by the biosensorand the activity monitored by the motion sensor; generate an exertionrecommendation for a future exercise session, the exertionrecommendation for the future exercise session comprising: one or moreof an exertion load recommendation and an exertion index recommendation;wherein the exertion recommendation for the future exercise session isgenerated from an exertion model based on one or more of a responseprofile for a past exercise session, an exertion load for a pastexercise session, and an exertion index for a past exercise session. 9.The system of claim 8, wherein the wearable device comprises one or moreof an earphone and a wristband.
 10. The system of claim 8, wherein thebiosensor comprises one or more of a finger biosensor, a wristbiosensor, and an optical heartrate sensor.
 11. The system of claim 8,wherein the biometric data includes one or more of a heart rate and aheart rate variability.
 12. The system of claim 8, wherein: the exertionmodel is further based on the amount of time taken to complete aprevious exercise session, the amount of time taken monitored by theelectronic clock; and the exertion recommendation is further based onthe amount of time the exercise session is anticipated to take.
 13. Thesystem of claim 8, wherein the biosensor monitors biometricsperiodically at a predetermined frequency.
 14. The system of claim 8,further comprising: a first wireless transceiver embedded in thewearable device; a second wireless transceiver embedded in a computingdevice operatively coupled to the wearable device; wherein, the firstand second wireless transceivers are configured to receive and send oneor more of the biometric data and the activity data;
 15. Acomputer-implemented method for determining an exertion recommendationfor an anticipated exercise session, the method comprising: measuringbiometrics using a biosensor embedded in a wearable device; measuringactivity using a motion sensor embedded in a wearable device; generatingbiometric data from the measured biometrics; generating activity datafrom the measured activity; generating an exercise intensity value basedon one or more of the biometrics monitored by the biosensor and theactivity monitored by the motion sensor; generating an exertion valuebased on an exercise intensity value; generating one or more of anexertion load and an exertion index based on an exertion value;generating a response profile based on one or more of the biometricsmonitored by the biosensor and the activity monitored by the motionsensor; generating an exertion recommendation for a future exercisesession, the exertion recommendation for the future exercise sessioncomprising: one or more of an exertion load recommendation and anexertion index recommendation; wherein the exertion recommendation forthe future exercise session is generated from an exertion model based onone or more of a response profile for a past exercise session, anexertion load for a past exercise session, and an exertion index for apast exercise session.
 16. The computer-implemented method of claim 14,wherein generating an exertion value comprises: weighting each of aplurality of exercise intensity values based on each exercise intensityvalue's proximity in time to the most recent exercise intensity value;aggregating the weighted plurality of exercise intensity values over ameasuring period; generating an exertion value based on the aggregationof the weighted plurality of exercise intensity values for the measuringperiod.
 17. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, whereingenerating a response profile comprises: calculating a current HRV valuefrom the biometric data; calculating, based on a set of HRV valuespreviously calculated using the biometric data, an average HRV value andan HRV variation; calculating the HRV score based on a differencebetween the average HRV value and the current HRV value, the differencebeing scaled by the HRV variation. creating a response profile based onone or more a heart rate variability (HRV) score based on the biometricdata, a fatigue score based on the activity data, a predicted HRV scorebased on the biometric data and the activity data, and a predictedfatigue score based on one or more of the biometric data and theactivity data;
 18. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, whereinthe wearable device comprises one or more of an earphone and awristband.
 19. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein thebiosensor comprises one or more of a finger biosensor, a wristbiosensor, and an optical heartrate sensor.
 20. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 14, wherein the biometric data includes one or more of aheart rate and a heart rate variability.
 21. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 14, wherein: the exertion model is further based on theamount of time taken to complete a previous exercise session, the amountof time taken monitored by the electronic clock; and the exertionrecommendation is further based on the amount of time the exercisesession is anticipated to take.
 22. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 14, wherein the biosensor monitors biometrics periodically at apredetermined frequency.
 23. The computer-implemented method of claim14, further comprising: receiving one or more of biometric data andactivity data at a computing device having a wireless receiver;